Four police officers sent to prison over Donovan Balanta death

A judge in Bogotá ordered four police officers to remain in a prison center while the criminal case against them proceeds. The preventive detention measure was announced on Monday, October 26, following hearings that resumed that morning.

The officers are accused in connection with the death of Donovan Balanta Paz, a 34-year-old Afro-descendant community leader. Balanta died after being taken into police custody during an operation in the Caracolí sector of Ciudad Bolívar, in southern Bogotá, on September 20.

“The preventive measure is not a conviction: the allegations must be debated in the process and the investigated persons preserve the presumption of innocence.”

The four officers facing the process are Major Roque Correa, Subintendente Henar Tapiero, and patrolmen Jonathan Giraldo and Santiago Vargas. They are charged with aggravated homicide and aggravated torture, with different levels of participation attributed to each.

Major Correa and patrolman Giraldo also face a charge of ideological falsity in a public document. This relates to alleged differences between official records of the procedure and evidence gathered by investigators.

None of the four officers accepted the charges. The preventive measure is not a conviction, and the suspects retain the presumption of innocence while the allegations are debated in court.

The hearings began last week with two long sessions on Thursday, October 22, and Friday, October 23, before the judge scheduled a continuation for Monday. The judge will now determine whether to accept the prosecutor's request for detention in a jail establishment.