Bogotá deploys 1,500 additional police officers to "regain security" in the city

The Director General of the Colombian Police, General Jorge Vargas, visits Jesús Pineda, a patrolman wounded in an attack in Bogotá.

The murder of a police officer while conducting a search, two shootings and an assault on a woman this Wednesday in different neighborhoods of Bogotá have become the most recent expression of insecurity in the Colombian capital.

Citizens are demanding urgent measures to stop the violence, which has been on the rise since the end of the restrictions due to the pandemic.

The Defense Minister, Diego Molano, has acknowledged that the city has experienced a "serious situation of insecurity and homicide in recent months and specifically in recent weeks" and assured that the mayor of Bogotá, Claudia López, made a call Urgently to the Government of Iván Duque to request support. "A special intervention force against homicide and theft is activated this weekend with 1,500 men (additional police officers) led by five generals who have been assigned to recover the security of the city," he said.

The patrolman Humberto Sabogal Soto was shot on Wednesday in the south of the city, when together with another uniformed man they arrested two suspects who were armed with revolvers.

One of them drew his weapon and fired at the officers, who fell wounded on the asphalt.

Neighbors of the neighborhood chased, together with the police, one of the attackers and captured him.

The other fled and is being wanted by the authorities.

“There are advances regarding the location and full identity of the other perpetrator of the event.

Also of the co-perpetrators, that is to say, the gang with which they committed crimes in that sector ”, assured the general director of the Police, General Jorge Luis Vargas.

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Sabogal, 41, died hours later in hospital, while his partner, Jesús Pineda, recovered from gunshot wounds.

The event recalled the murder of another patrolman, Edwin Caro, which occurred in identical circumstances last March: a search and the violent reaction of the armed suspects.

Now, as at that time, a wave of xenophobia has been unleashed by the participation of foreigners in both homicides.

Robberies with violence are at the center of concern.

Hours before the attack on the police, in the north of Bogotá, in the wealthy La Cabrera neighborhood, a 19-year-old boy suffered an attempted robbery and was shot in the chest when he struggled with the robbers;

while a woman was assaulted with a knife on the Transmilenio.

They are both safe.

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It's not just about perception.

According to figures from the Bogotá District Security Secretariat, crime has been increasing since January of this year.

While there were 78 homicides in January, in May and June, there were 117 and 118, respectively.

Thefts from people increased by 17% in the first six months of 2021 compared to the same period of 2020.

The management of citizen security has caused the mayor of Bogotá to bring bridges with the Government of Iván Duque, of which she has been critical.

“17,000 police officers like Jesús David take care of us every day.

Let's support their work.

Just as we demand that they protect the human rights of citizens, let us also take care of theirs, who do hard and difficult work chasing criminals who threaten our peace of mind, ”López said through Twitter.

The reinforcement of the police in Bogotá will be done in a targeted manner, taking into account the areas where certain crimes occur and paying special attention to thefts in public transport.

"There will be a lot of visibility of the police with plans to control patrols of vehicles and motorcycles, with judicial police, identifying antecedents and arrest warrants," said Vargas.

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