By Luis de Jesus
Sep 29, 2023, 8:44 PM EDT
Colombian authorities dismantled a network of coyotes that was dedicated to trafficking undocumented migrants at the airport in the city of El Dorado and that, to do so, used garbage cans, where they hid and transported them to facilitate their entry into the country without complying with the legal requirements.
A group of 10 people were arrested and various assets were seized and confiscated, according to the Colombian media. Time.
The operation was coordinated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Interpol (Dijin) with officials from the Attorney General’s Office of Colombia and the United States National Security Investigations Office.
The #DIJIN in coordination with @FiscaliaCOL and @HSI, dismantled a transnational criminal organization, dedicated to migrant trafficking, who facilitated the entry of people into the country without legal requirements, resulting in the capture of 10 of its members. pic.twitter.com/AlPBfgp1ce
— Directorate of Criminal Investigation and INTERPOL (@DIJINPolicia) September 26, 2023
The arrests of those involved were carried out in Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Montería, Antonia and Nariño. In addition to two people captured in Dallas and Atlanta, in the United States.
“Precautionary measures of embargo, kidnapping and suspension of dispositive power over 16 pieces of furniture and real estate, commercially valued at more than 2,400 million pesos, were carried out; among these, 10 vehicles, 3 hotels, 2 commercial establishments and 1 house,” Dijin reported through X.
The Colombian National Police reported that Jan Pieter de Vrijer Molina, the head of the organization, acted as “the manager” of a company. “He directed and employed recruiters, drivers and service providers, who participated in the operation by fulfilling different functions,” he said.
The transnational criminal organization facilitated and collaborated with the entry, transit and exit of migrants, using the modality of coyotes, its leader, acting as the manager of a company with specific roles within to boost criminal activities. pic.twitter.com/7u3ap2IXH8
— Directorate of Criminal Investigation and INTERPOL (@DIJINPolicia) September 26, 2023
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The man, who had been in these operations for more than seven years, coordinated logistics, transportation, accommodation, food, visa management and identification documents.
The migrants, coming from Austria, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya and South Sudan, paid millions of pesos to the network. There were also foreigners who sent money from Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Mexico and several cities in the United States: Alexandria, San Diego, Dallas, Miami, Houston, Tampa and Austin.
Colombian authorities stated that those involved in the coyote network transferred migrants to public areas of the El Dorado international airport. That, reported the Colombian media, facilitated the entry of these people into the country during “cleaning days” in which they were taken out in garbage cans.
Captures carried out in Bogotá, Medellín, Cali and Montería, in addition to 2 arrests in the United States, seizing 19 passports, more than 71 million pesos in cash, 29 thousand euros, a house adapted as a transit hotel was also found, finding 8 Cuban migrants. pic.twitter.com/AKHg8WcAv2
— Directorate of Criminal Investigation and INTERPOL (@DIJINPolicia) September 26, 2023
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