International
Colombian ex-military officer sentenced for false positives
August 1|
The Prosecutor’s Office of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) on Monday requested a 20-year prison sentence for retired Colombian Army Colonel Publio Hernán Mejía Gutiérrez for around 72 cases of extrajudicial executions known as false positives.
Giovanni Álvarez Santoyo, director of the Investigation and Accusation Unit (UIA) of the JEP accused the ex-military of structuring a criminal organization to kill, disappear and torture people with the objective of generating false evidence, while he commanded the La Popa Battalion.
“He created an armed power structure that was dedicated to execute the criminal plan for false results (…) The accusation made against Mr. Mejía Gutiérrez is for the crimes of homicide in protected person, forced disappearance and torture”, assured Álvarez Santoyo.
The official affirmed that copies were sent to the Prosecutor’s Office, the Attorney General’s Office and the Military Criminal Justice to investigate if there are officials with any criminal or disciplinary responsibility for negligence in dealing with situations of the armed conflict.
The retired colonel will be charged for “35 facts and 72 persons; that is, 72 persons who were extrajudicially executed”, specified Álvarez, who pointed out that these are “criminal conducts”.
It also transpired that prosecutors will have to prove in a trial that the former soldier did indeed commit these crimes and that he did so in collusion with paramilitaries of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), which could lead to a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
The JEP is studying the so-called “false positives” and counts 6,402 people who “were illegitimately killed to be presented as combat casualties throughout the national territory between 2002 and 2008,” corresponding to the government of former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010).
Mejía was commander of the La Popa Battalion, based in Valledupar, in the north of the country, and was charged along with other high-ranking officers for 127 murders and forced disappearances in his jurisdiction. However, he is one of the high-ranking army officers who has not recognized the crimes against humanity charged by the JEP.
“The former colonel was always clear about who his victims were going to be: young people in economic need, the unemployed – in some cases from broken families (…) – and peasant and indigenous populations,” concluded Álvarez.
International
Three Die During World Cup Celebrations in Mexico City After Mexico’s Victory
Three people died in Mexico City while celebrating Mexico’s 2-0 victory over Ecuador at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, local authorities confirmed on Wednesday.
According to the city’s Health Secretariat, the victims—a 44-year-old man, a 48-year-old woman, and a 19-year-old woman—died from asphyxiation following the post-match celebrations.
Emergency services were dispatched to the Juárez district after reports that three people had lost consciousness shortly after Tuesday night’s match.
Paramedics, firefighters, and police officers responded to the scene, where the victims received first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) before being transported to a hospital for specialized medical care. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, all three were later pronounced dead.
“We are in contact with their families to provide all the support they need,” Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada Molinasaid in a statement posted on social media.
“With my hand on my heart, I extend my deepest condolences to their loved ones. We once again call on everyone to celebrate with responsibility, care, and empathy,” she added.
Mexico’s victory over Ecuador sparked massive celebrations at the Estadio Azteca and across the capital. Goals from Raúl Jiménez and Julián Quiñones secured the hosts’ place in the Round of 16, where they are set to face either England or the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who meet on Wednesday in Atlanta.
Should Mexico advance to the quarterfinals, the team would face either Brazil, coached by Carlo Ancelotti, or Norway.
International
Families Sue Nicolás Maduro in U.S. Over Alleged Extrajudicial Killings
The families of five young Venezuelan men have filed a 44-page civil lawsuit in a U.S. federal court, accusing former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro of ordering extrajudicial executions carried out by the country’s former Special Action Forces (FAES) between 2017 and 2020.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, alleges that the victims were among thousands of people killed under Maduro’s administration by security units, including the FAES, which were dissolved in 2021 following widespread allegations of human rights abuses, including criticism from the United Nations.
Maduro is currently being held in a New York detention facility awaiting trial on U.S. drug trafficking charges after he was removed from power during a U.S. military operation in Venezuela in January.
The complaint argues that the killings followed a well-documented pattern of extrajudicial executions allegedly carried out during Maduro’s presidency, which lasted from 2013 to 2026. Throughout his time in office, Maduro faced repeated accusations from international organizations of using state repression to maintain power.
According to the lawsuit, FAES officers arrived at the victims’ neighborhoods before dawn, dressed entirely in black and wearing face coverings. The agents allegedly separated the men from their families before fatally shooting them.
The complaint further alleges that authorities later fabricated official reports claiming the victims had “resisted arrest” in an effort to justify the killings.
“Maduro used the FAES as a political instrument and a mechanism of social control to violently suppress dissent, terrorize low-income communities, and eliminate political opposition,” the lawsuit states.
It also describes the FAES as being “widely regarded as a death squad or extermination group.”
The plaintiffs argue that Venezuela’s judicial system has failed to provide accountability for the killings, preventing the victims’ families from obtaining justice.
For security reasons, the identities of the families remain confidential. They are seeking financial compensation from Maduro under the U.S. Torture Victim Protection Act.
According to The New York Times, Maduro is expected to argue that he is entitled to head-of-state immunity in the civil proceedings.
In the separate criminal case pending against him in the United States, in which he is charged alongside his wife, Cilia Flores, Maduro has described himself as a “prisoner of war.”
He has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, including conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States and weapons-related offenses.
International
Salvadoran National Arrested in New Jersey with Over 70 Machine Gun Conversion Devices
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrest of 21-year-old Salvadoran national Erick Márquez Cruz after authorities allegedly discovered more than 70 machine gun conversion devices and other firearm-related components during a search of his residence in North Bergen, New Jersey.
According to the Justice Department, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant on June 25 at Cruz’s home, where they recovered a 3D printer that was allegedly being used to manufacture firearm components. Investigators also seized 17 3D-printed firearm frames, magazines, and more than 70 machine gun conversion devices (MCDs).
Federal authorities explained that the conversion devices, which are classified as machine guns under U.S. law, are designed to convert semiautomatic firearms into fully automatic weapons capable of firing multiple rounds with a single pull of the trigger.
Cruz has been charged with unlawful possession of a machine gun. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross financial gain resulting from the offense, whichever is greater.
Three Die During World Cup Celebrations in Mexico City After Mexico’s Victory
Families Sue Nicolás Maduro in U.S. Over Alleged Extrajudicial Killings
Salvadoran National Arrested in New Jersey with Over 70 Machine Gun Conversion Devices
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