The Norte del Valle Cartel, or North Valley Cartel, was a drug cartel that operated principally in the north of the Valle del Cauca department of Colombia, most notably the coastal city of Buenaventura. It rose to prominence during the 1990s, after the Cali and Medellín Cartels fragmented, and it was known as one of the most powerful organizations in the illegal drug trade. The drug cartel was led by the brothers Luis Enrique and Javier Antonio Calle Serna, alias "Los Comba", until its takedown in 2008 by the authorities of the Colombia, Venezuela and with cooperation of the United States DEA.
Los Pepes, a name derived from the Spanish phrase "Los Perseguidos por Pablo Escobar", was a paramilitary group composed of enemies of Pablo Escobar. They waged a small-scale war against the Medellín Cartel in 1993, which ended the same year following the death of Escobar. The group was financed by the Cali Cartel and was led by the Castaño brothers. An example of their acts could be seen on the streets of Medellín, such as hangings of Pablo's hitmen.
Right-wing paramilitary groups in Colombia are paramilitary groups acting in opposition to revolutionary Marxist–Leninist guerrilla forces and their allies among the civilian population. These right-wing paramilitary groups control a large majority of the illegal drug trade of cocaine and other substances. The Colombian National Centre for Historical Memory has estimated that between 1981 and 2012 paramilitary groups have caused 38.4% of the civilian deaths, while the Guerillas are responsible for 16.8%, 10.1% by the Colombian Security Forces and 27.7% by non-identified armed groups, although the chief prosecutor of the ICC would contradict these numbers.
Diego León Montoya Sánchez, also known as Don Diego, is a Colombian former crime boss and leader of the Norte del Valle drug cartel. On October 25, 2002, Montoya was listed as a Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker on the United States Department of Treasury's Specially Designated National List.
8,000 Process is the unofficial name of the legal investigation for the events surrounding accusations about the Colombian Liberal Party candidate Ernesto Samper's 1994 campaign for President of Colombia being partially funded with drug money. 8,000 Process was the case number issued by the Prosecutor General's Office.
Kidnappings in Colombia refers to the practice of kidnapping in the Republic of Colombia. This criminal practice was first introduced in modern Colombian history during the early 1970s by the guerrilla movements and, later, also by criminal groups. With the release of Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt on July 2, 2008 this practice gained worldwide notoriety.
Francisco Hélmer Herrera Buitrago also known as "Pacho" and "H7", was a Colombian drug trafficker, fourth in command in the Cali Cartel, and believed to be the son of Benjamín Herrera Zuleta.
Henry Loaiza Ceballos aka El Alacrán is a former Colombian drug trafficker and a member of the Cali Cartel. Loaiza was mainly in charge of the military apparatus of the organization, but was also involved in the shipment of illegal drugs.
Black Eagles is a term describing a series of Colombian drug trafficking, right-wing, counter-revolutionary, paramilitary organizations made up of new and preexisting paramilitary forces, who emerged from the failures of the demobilization process between 2004 and 2006, which aimed to disarm the United Self-Defense Units of Colombia (AUC).
The illegal drug trade in Colombia has, since the 1970s, centered successively on four major drug trafficking cartels: Medellín, Cali, Norte del Valle, and North Coast, as well as several bandas criminales, or BACRIMs. The trade eventually created a new social class and influenced several aspects of Colombian culture, economics, and politics.
The Valle del Cauca Deputies hostage crisis refers to the kidnapping of 12 Deputies of the Assembly of Valle del Cauca, Colombia, on April 12, 2002 by members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to pressure a prisoner exchange between them and the government and to negotiate the demilitarization of the municipalities of Florida and Pradera to initiate peace dialogues.
Dilian Francisca Toro Torres is a Colombian physician and politician, she served as Senator of Colombia from 2002 to 2013. She was investigated by the Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia on charges of money laundering, and remained under preventive detention from 25 July 2012 to 1 August 2013 at the Police Centre for Higher Studies (Cespo) in Bogotá. She currently serves as Governor of Valle del Cauca Department.
Eduardo Restrepo Victoria alias "El Socio" is a Colombian drug trafficker former member of the Norte del Valle Cartel and associate of Wilber Varela. Restrepo was wanted by Colombian authorities on charges of illegal drug trade, illicit enrichment and illegal arms possession. He was captured by Colombian and United States authorities on July 25, 2006 On July 20, 2006 the United States government asked for his extradition. He was extradited to the United States on December 10, 2007.
The El Aro massacre was a massacre in Colombia which occurred on October 22, 1997 in the municipality of Ituango, Department of Antioquia. 15 individuals accused of being leftist supporters of FARC were massacred by paramilitary groups. Perpetrators also raped women, burned down 43 houses, stole cattle and forcibly displaced 900 people.
The Jamundí Massacre was a massacre perpetrated by a Colombian National Army elite unit known as the High Mountain Battalion which was then commanded by Colonel Byron Carvajal against an elite Colombian National Police counter-narcotics unit on May 22, 2006 in the municipality of Jamundí, Department of Valle del Cauca.
Los Rastrojos is a Colombian drug cartel and paramilitary group engaged in the Colombian armed conflict. The group was formed by Norte del Valle cartel capo Wilber Varela, alias "Jabon" and one of his right-hand men, "Diego Rastrojo", around 2004 when Varela fell out with fellow-capo Diego Leon Montoya, alias "Don Diego". The group became independent after the murder of its main founder in Venezuela in 2008 and at its height was one of the most important drug trafficking organizations in Colombia.
Colombia has a high crime rate due to being a center for the cultivation and trafficking of cocaine. The Colombian conflict began in the mid-1960s and is a low-intensity asymmetric war between Colombian governments, paramilitary groups, crime syndicates, and left-wing guerrillas such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and the National Liberation Army (ELN), fighting each other to increase their influence in Colombian territory. Two of the most important international actors that have contributed to the Colombian conflict are multinational companies and the United States.
Carlos Holmes Trujillo García was a Colombian dynasty politician, diplomat, scholar, and attorney who served as minister of defense, foreign affairs, interior, and education. He also served as the mayor of Cali and as ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS), the European Union, and a number of nations.
Events in the year 2020 in Colombia.
Events in the year 2021 in Colombia.
Colombia