Colombian authorities have accused 15 members of the military for five “false positive” killings in the northeast Casanare department, various media reported Friday.
Following investigation, the Prosecutor General’s Office has formally accused the military members of responsibility for killing five civilians in 2005 and presenting them as members of the AUC paramilitary organization, fallen in combat.
According to authorities, on May 25, 2005, in the department’s Monterrey municipality, troops from the 4th Infantry Batallion reported that the supposed paramilitaries were killed in combat by Colombian forces, stating that they had also found arms and explosives on the site.
The evidence collected by the investigative body established that the said armed encounter never occurred, and that the victims were in fact local villagers, while the reported arms were planted by the military members.
Testimonies and other evidence also established that the victims were detained by the army members, who forced them to dress in AUC uniforms, drove them out to a country property, and killed them.
Ten soldiers and a lieutenant are charged with the homicide of multiple protected persons, forced disappearance, ideological deceit with public documents, torture, procedural fraud, illegally carrying weapons and conspiracy to commit crimes, while four other soldiers are accused of participation in the murders.
