The Military Forces, supporting the defense of natural resources of the Colombian southeast, in the course of Operation Artemisa -a campaign designed to fight deforestation in Colombia, in accordance with the guidelines of the Presidency of the Republic and within the framework of Plan de Operaciones Bicentenario Héroes de la Libertad (Bicentenary Operations Heroes of Freedom Plan)-, captured four individuals who, apparently, would be part of the Residual drug trafficking Organized Armed Group (GAO-r) Estructura Primera.
This thorough military operation required accurate information to determine the severity of these criminal acts. This operation was possible thanks to the inter-agency work conducted by troops of the National Army, the Air Force, the Attorney’s Office and Cormacarena (environmental protection institution), who are working jointly, since more than two years ago, on the protection of natural reserves and national parks of the regions of Amazonas and Oriniquía.
For several months, these institutions have worked together in different tasks with the aim of attacking this problem that has hit the south of Meta, since the organized armed groups used forests as a source of illegal financing, which devastate areas of great importance for the region and for Colombia.
The sector konwn as Brisas del Iteviare, in the municipality of Maripipán, Meta, was the target of this operation, for which a very careful land deployment was required to not being detected by members the residual GAO Estructura Primera. In the same way, the participation of the Colombian Air Force was vital for this mission, not only the air intelligence but also the air mobility contributed to the timely development of the mission and was fundamental for ground men.
The troops secured the sector and proceeded to intervene the different places where these four men carried out the illegal activities. These individuals were surprised by soldiers of the National Army and by officials of the CTI (Technical Investigations Corps) of the Attorney’s Office.
The individuals must face charges for the crimes of illicit use of natural resources, invasion of areas of ecological importance and association to commit crimes, due to indiscriminate deforestation that directly hits the Amazonas’ biome, the air, water conservation trees and the environment of the lung of the world.
It is important to highlight that in recent years, jointly efforts have been increased by the National Government, territorial environmental institutions, control agencies and the Military Forces, to prevent and counter crimes against biodiversity, fauna, flora, indiscriminate logging, illicit plantations and deforestation, which have led to important results that stop criminal activities against that issue, which nowadays is a matter of global concern.
Source: press-Colombian Air Force
