Heavy blow to GAO-r. During the military operation 'Orinoquía' in the framework of the 'Zeus' campaign, 14 individuals of the Residual Organized Armed Group (GAO-r) died, six were captured and four minors were recovered.
In development of a joint, coordinated and interagency operation conducted by the Military Forces and coordinated with the National Police, in the village of La Tunia, in the municipality of San Vicente del Caguán, in military operations, Edgar Mesías Salgado Aragón, alias “Rodrigo Cadete”, died. He was the ringleader of the GAO-r, structure 62 and former member of the Farc.
Alias 'Rodrigo Cadete' had been delinquent for more than 40 years in Farc's Fronts such as 15, 16, 27 and 39. He belonged to the company 'Che Guevara' and the Front 'Juan José Rondón', mainly in the southern and eastern Blocks of the extinct Farc, maintaining a criminal and financial profile based on drug trafficking and extortion. In 2017, he declared himself dissident and became second in command of the Residual GAO, Estructura 62.
Criminal record:
Alias 'Rodrigo Cadete' is accused of being responsible for the following terrorist actions:
1996: Guerrilla attack to the military base of Chupave (in the department of Vichada), where six soldiers were killed and nine were wounded.
1998: Taking of the military base in Miraflores, in the department of Guaviare, where 9 soldiers were killed, 10 were wounded and 22 kidnapped.
1998: Taking of Mitu (in the department of Vaupés), where 85 people were murdered, including 70 policemen and 15 civilians, two of them representatives in the local council. In the same way, the kidnapping of 45 people occurred.
1998: Attack against troops of the Mobile Brigade No.3, in the village of Santa Bárbara, in the municipality of El Retorno (in the department of Guaviare), where 26 soldiers were killed and 10 were wounded.
1999: Attack on the Police Station in Puerto Rico (in the department of Meta), where they killed five policemen and kidnapped 28.
1999: Murder of four military: an officer, two patrol officers and a soldier in Solano, in the department of Caquetá.
2016: Entered the peace process. He participated in the Havana table.
2017: He declares dissent. He fled with a group of GAO-r members who were waiting for him near Cartagena del Chairá and Paujil (in the department of Caquetá).
In the same way, he assumed as second ringleader of the GAO-r under the command of alias 'Gentil Duarte'. He is responsible for selective homicides, vehicle incineration and forced displacement in in the departments of Caquetá, Guaviare, Meta and Putumayo.
In the course of this operation, 15 rifles, three shotguns, six pistols, a grenade launcher, 20 40mm grenades, three hand grenades, 2,200 war cartridges and three pentolite units were in the same way found. In the place troops also found four computers, five hard drives, 14 USB, four base radios, three scanner radios and a GPS, important elements to military intelligence.
With this result an important blow to this residual organized armed group is given, taking into account that the command and control of this structure is hit in Caquetá, Guaviare, Meta and Putumayo, thwarting the intentions of recovering the areas previously occupied by the extinct Farc .
Source: COGFM - Strategic Communications
