Bogota authorities on Monday found the missing body of a policeman who had disappeared in Colombia’s capital over a week ago.
“They have told me that they have found the body of patrolman [Jairo] Diaz, who has been missing since January 27, in a sewer in the area under his jurisdiction and…we are now waiting for the autopsy to determine the cause of death,” said the National Police Director, Jose Roberto Leon Riaño.
Jairo Diaz, age 24, was a native of Arauca village in the municipality of Palestina, and had been in the service of the National Police for four years.
The revelation of the patrolman’s death moved Mayor Gustavo Petro to issue a warning to Bogota’s criminal organizations.
“The assassination of the patrolman [Jairo Diaz] is a message from the mafias against Bogota, and the response is to dismantle them,” stated Petro.
El asesinato del patrullero es un mensaje de las mafias contra Bogotá, la respuesta es su desmantelamiento.
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) February 5, 2013
The cause of death is still unclear however — it may have been an accidental.
“After looking at the corpse it is possible that the death may have been accidental,” said the commander of Bogota’s Metropolitan Police, General Luis Eduardo Martinez.
The national coroner’s office will carry out an autopsy of the body today to determine the exact cause of death.
