Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella helps lead law enforcement agents in a large-scale, multi-agency operation; confronts individuals suspected of trafficking vulnerable women between Spain and Colombia.
The City of Medellin is Colombia’s second largest city, located in the Aburrá Valley on the flanks of the Andes Mountains. It is known as the “City of Eternal Spring” due to its temperate climate. It’s a colorful city, rich in culture and history with neighborhoods reaching up into the foothills surrounding a bustling downtown core. The city is home to about 3.7 million people and appears to have shed its former global reputation as a city once associated with violent drug cartels. Today, Medellin is a favorite destination among eco-tourists, and is celebrated for its innovation, economic growth, and dramatic scenery.
This is where law enforcement agents from Spain and Colombia and members from Our Rescue’s Ecuador- and Europe-based teams converged last month. Late in October, teams executed a complex, large-scale search and arrest operation that would take perpetrators off the streets and disrupt a human trafficking network spanning two continents.
This is Operation Lérida in Medellin, Colombia.
From Spain to Colombia, Agents Track a Criminal Network
From late February to early March of this year, the Trafficking Unit (UCRIF) of the Spanish National Police (SNP) executed an initial large-scale operation resulting in the arrest of 8 human trafficking suspects in Spain. The team also identified and rescued 6 Colombian women who were victims of sexual exploitation in the country. Spanish National Police also froze the criminals’ bank accounts valued at more than $900,000 Euros (over $1M USD).
The Unit conducted interviews and an in-depth investigation which led to the identification of two human trafficking recruiters from Medellin, suspected of luring the survivors into a sexual exploitation ring in Europe. Spanish National Police would travel to Colombia later in the year to support a similar operation in Medellin, supported by Our Rescue’s team in Europe.
On October 27th, agents of the Sexual and Trafficking Unit (GISEF) of the Colombian National Police (CNP) worked shoulder to shoulder with SNP UCRIF investigators to execute two search and arrest warrants in the city. This joint transnational effort resulted in the arrest of two Colombian recruiters who appeared to be instrumental in financing and operating the human trafficking network responsible for luring vulnerable women to Spain with false promises of employment and a better life. This operation was part of a large-scale government effort against various crimes in Medellin. On the evening of the 27th, more than 1,300 CNP officers and military personnel had been deployed across the region on various combat missions, a testament to the country’s focus on fighting crime. Teams gathered at 10:30 p.m. the night before the operation, and at 1:00 a.m., just before the mission began, the President of Colombia addressed police officers and military troops, thanking them for their international cooperation and dedication to the mission. By around 2:30 a.m., Operation Lerida was in full swing.
Standing shoulder-to-shoulder in the fight
“A tremendous amount of planning, coordination, and expertise went into Operation Lerida,” said Miguel Salazar Cordova, Country Director for Our Rescue in Ecuador and Chile. “Members from Our Rescue’s Ecuador-based team were present for the operation, supporting on-the-ground logistics, and providing things like vehicle maintenance, lodging, airfare, and meals for those involved in the mission.”
Salazar also explained that Our Rescue’s ESD K9, Samai, also played a pivotal role, detecting and retrieving various electronic storage devices that could contain critical evidence for the prosecution.
“Some of the devices our ESD K9 found were beside the safe that housed a large number of monetary assets that were seized, in excess of 80k USD,” he added. And while the suspect’s home was relatively well organized, Salazar noted it’s the highly trained ESD K9 that is a “force multiplier” in cases like this, able to quickly locate devices wherever they may be hidden, regardless of how organized or chaotic and cluttered a location may be.
Samai found a cell phone in the home as well as a micro-SD card, both of which are being analyzed by digital forensics investigators.
For two Spanish law enforcement officers, one from Madrid and one from Barcelona, Our Rescue provided travel and lodging enabling their participation in the effort.
Agents from Colombia and Spain deployed on two search and arrest warrants in Medellin that night. One targeted a man, Andres Felipe Zapata Villa, or “Zapata” for short, who is suspected of financing the entire trafficking network and the other focused on a woman suspected of luring women working at a local beauty salon into traveling to Spain to accept job offers. These jobs were fake and the Colombian women who found themselves in Spain soon realized their dreams for a better life landed them in brutal captivity, far from home.
During the search and arrest warrant of the primary suspect’s home, ESD K9 Samai played a critical role in the identification of electronic devices that were seized by CNP GISEF agents. Authorities also seized nearly $80,000 USD in U.S., EURO, and COP currencies. During this search warrant, the President de la Espriella visited the residence where items were seized, directly confronting the primary suspect for allegedly enabling the sexual exploitation of vulnerable Colombian women abroad in Spain. He again thanked law enforcement and military personnel onsite for executing such a successful operation.
Demonstrating the impact of donors
The success of Operation Lerida Medellin exemplifies the close working relationships Our Rescue has developed with international law enforcement and government agencies around the world. We are grateful for all their efforts and the seamless coordination that helped bring perpetrators to justice efficiently and safely.
These efforts and similar efforts in communities across the U.S. and around the world help make vulnerable women and children safer. Extensive investigation, careful planning, and close coordination across teams, agencies, and countries enable operations like this to hold criminals accountable and bring victims to safety. Operation Lérida Medellin highlights the critical role each team member plays in the fight against human trafficking and exploitation.
Our Rescue is also immensely grateful to our generous donors whose contributions directly enable us to support efforts like Operation Lérida in Medellin. Thank you to all who stand with us in the fight to end human trafficking and exploitation.
