BOGOTA, Aug 25 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — A military operation in El Retorno, Colombia, on Sunday resulted in the death of Willinton Vanegas Leyva, also known by his alias “Dumar” or “Chito.” According to Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez Suárez, Dumar was a senior leader of the “Martín Villa faction,” a part of the FARC dissident group known as the Central General Staff (EMC), led by Iván Mordisco.
”This criminal, with 15 years of criminal history and an arrest warrant for aggravated conspiracy to commit a crime, was responsible for armed actions in which four heroes of the homeland died in Argelia (Cauca, 2024),“ the minister said on X.
The slain guerrilla leader ”had the mission of consolidating strategic drug trafficking corridors“ in the departments of Meta and Guaviare ”to strengthen the dissidents and expand their criminal apparatus,” he added.
Dumar was considered one of Mordisco’s most trusted allies. He had been a criminal for 15 years and was wanted for various crimes, including aggravated conspiracy.
The operation, a joint effort by the National Army, Air Force, Police, and the Attorney General’s Office, also resulted in the death of another guerrilla member and the capture of six others.
According to the Minister of Defense, Dumar was responsible for the deaths of four soldiers in a 2024 attack in Argelia, Cauca. He was also tasked with establishing drug trafficking routes in the departments of Meta and Guaviare to strengthen the EMC’s criminal network.
The government stated that Dumar’s death was a significant blow to the EMC’s operations, particularly their ability to expand and maintain command. This operation followed other recent successes against the group, including the capture of Iván Mordisco’s brother, Luis Vera Fernández, on August 22.
The minister’s announcement comes just three days after two separate attacks, attributed to FARC dissidents, killed 19 people and wounded approximately 80 in Antioquia and Cali.
The government blamed dissidents led by Iván Mordisco for the truck bomb attack that exploded in Cali, near the Marco Fidel Suárez Military Aviation School, killing six people and injuring 79. The other attack occurred in a rural area of Amalfi (Antioquia), where a helicopter belonging to the Anti-Narcotics Police was shot down, killing thirteen officers and injuring four others. — NNN-MERCOPRESS
