End of ‘La Esperanza’: Authorities dismantle criminal network earning up to 45 million pesos a month in northern Valle

Authorities say they have dismantled La Esperanza, an alleged criminal network that operated in Bolívar and the district of Ricaurte in northern Valle del Cauca. Eight people were arrested in a series of raids targeting a group accused of trafficking, producing and carrying illegal drugs.

The operation involved the National Police criminal investigation unit, police intelligence, the Special Operations Groups and the Technical Investigation Corps. Officers executed eight arrest warrants for conspiracy to commit a crime and conducted eight searches. They seized 69 doses of bazuco, two bags containing a rocky substance believed to be cocaine base, drug-packaging materials, 830,000 pesos in cash, a pistol and four mobile phones.

Investigators said the network used a fragmented sales model to avoid detection and maintain a steady flow of money. It allegedly operated fixed and mobile drug-selling points and delivered small quantities to customers. Authorities estimated that the organization generated illicit income of about 45 million pesos per month.

After preliminary hearings, a judge ordered five of the detainees held in prison while the case proceeds. The other three were placed under house arrest. The arrests form part of intensified security operations in northern Valle, where authorities are also targeting the illicit economies of criminal groups.

Lieutenant Colonel Marco Antonio Mora Tous, commander of the Roldanillo Police District, urged residents of Roldanillo, northern Valle and the wider department to report crime anonymously. “Reporting is an act of courage, an act of love for our community,” he said, promising complete confidentiality for people who report drug dealing, theft, homicide or extortion.

“

Reporting is an act of courage, an act of love for our community.