Summer
1995
ARREST
OF CALI LEADERS
Gilberto Rodriguez-
Orejuela was fingerprinted following his arrest.
Henry Loiaza-Ceballos
Victor Patino-Fomeque
Jose Santacruz-Londono
was arrested while meeting with associates in Colombia on July
4, 1995.
Helmer "Pacho"
Herrera-Buitrago
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During the summer
of 1995, six top leaders of the Cali mafia surrendered or were arrested
by Colombian authorities under the leadership of CNP Director General
Rosso Serrano, and the Cali mafia began to collapse. The arrest of the
entire hierarchy of the wealthiest and most powerful international criminal
organization was the most significant enforcement action taken against
organized crime leaders since the Apalachin Gangster Raid in 1957 that
exposed the existance and power of organized crime syndicates in the United
States.
On June 9, 1995,
Gilberto Rodriguez-Orejuela was arrested by the Colombian National Police
(CNP) during a house raid in Cali. When the police searched the home several
days earlier, Rodriguez-Orejeula hid in a hollowed-out bathroom cabinet
with an oxygen tank. The CNPs excellent police work led to his arrest.
After he was taken into custody, police discovered that he had a copy
of an unclassified DEA report titled The Kings of Cocaine
that had been translated into Spanish. He was sentenced to a prison term
of 13 years.
On June 19, 1995,
Henry Loiaza-Ceballos, who had overseen the mafias military infrastructure,
surrendered to police. He was considered one of the most violent members
of the Cali drug mafia and was linked to at least three massacres in Colombia.
On June 24, 1995,
Victor Julio Patino-Fomeque, who was responsible for ensuring the security
and effectiveness of the mafias maritime operations, also surrendered
and was sentenced to 12 years behind bars.
On July 4, 1995,
Jose Santacruz-Londono, the number three leader in the Cali mafia,
was arrested by the CNP as he dined with associates at a Bogota steak
house. He was never sentenced because he escaped from prison and was killed
in March 1996 during a confrontation with the CNP.
Finally, on August
6, 1995, Miguel Rodriguez-Orejuela, the brother of Gilberto, was arrested
when the CNP broke down the door of his apartment and found him hiding
in a secret closet during another house raid. He was sentenced to 21 years.
Less than one year
later, there were two more arrests of major Cali mafia leaders. In March
1996, Juan Carlos Chupeta Ramirez-Abadia, surrendered to Colombian
authorities and was later sentenced to 24 years in prison.
On
September 1, 1996, Helmer Pacho Herrera-Buitrago surrendered
to Colombian authorities. He was one of the charter members of the Cali
mafia and was the remaining Kingpin being sought by Colombian
authorities. He was sentenced to six years in prison.
These arrests marked
the beginning of the decline of the Cali mafia and were the results of
extensive investigation by the DEA. However, the investigations of the
Cali mafia would not have been as successful if not for the outstanding
efforts of the CNP. Remarking on the CNPs contributions to combatting
the drug problem in Colombia, Administrator Constantine remarked in 1998,
No one has sacrificed more than the Colombian National Police. At
great sacrifice to themselves, and in the face of extraordinary temptations
for corruption, General Rosso Serrano and his brave law enforcement officers
have fought the powerful drug traffickers in Colombia.
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