This is the ninth operation carried out in northwestern Colombia to stop this serious environmental crime.
Cordoba. In the Military and Police Campaign 'Agamenón II', troops of the National Army, conducted a joint, coordinated and inter-institutional work with the Colombian Air Force, Police and Prosecutor, to deal the heaviest and most decisive blow, in 2018, against the sources of criminal financing of the Organized Armed Group (GAO) Clan del Golfo, that this group obtains from the illegal exploitation of mineral deposits.
The operation took place in the rural area of the municipality of Ayapel, east of the department of Córdoba, where the soldiers, guided by information from Military Intelligence, disembarked at several strategic points, which led to surprise the people who were at that time working on illicit extraction activities.
In the operation, 17 individuals were captured and 13 dredges, three bulldozers, three engines and three mining production units, which belonged to the GAO (organized armed group in Spanish) “Clan del Golfo”, were destroyed unused.
The cost of the neutralized machinery would rise up to 2,500 million pesos (about US$ 66,000) and it is estimated that they would generate around 300 million pesos (US$ 99,000) a month, which would feed the criminal structures of that organized armed group.
But the most important achievement of this result is that it was possible to stop the serious environmental damages that were being indiscriminately caused by the excessive use of mercury and elements that caused damage to the flora, fauna and water sources. It should be noted that the Ciénaga de Ayapel is an environmental asset of the country that was declared a Ramsar Wetland due to its ecological importance, especially in the protection of migratory waterfowl. Currently there are only 2,200 Ramsar sites worldwide.
According to intelligence, it could be established, the criminals would have carried out a depredation of more than 640 hectares and it is estimated that this losses could be equivalent to 64,000 million pesos, about US$21,100,000.
The detainees were put into custody of the authorities for their respective judicial process.
In the area of the events a special presence of the Public Force will be stablished to prevent the repetition of these criminal operations against the environment.
Source: National Army
