Neo-paramilitary group “Los Urabeños” are taking control of the Medellin underworld at the expense of the local “Oficina de Envigado,”, newspaper El Tiempo reported.
According to the newspaper, the Uraba-based neo-paramilitaries have moved from their urban stronghold, the western Comuna 13, into other neighborhoods of Colombia’s second largest city.
The newspaper said to have sources saying that the Urabeños killed Oficina leader “Sebastian” and are pressuring Medellin gangs aligned with the Oficina to switch sides, leaving the last remaining remnants of Pablo Escobar’s Medellin cartel without territory.
The Urabeños reportedly entered the city following an alliance with “Valenciano,” who had been involved in a bloofy turf war with Sebastian over control of the Oficina and Medellin.
By the end of 2010 and after thousands of deaths, Sebastian had taken control of most of the city’s gangs, leaving only the Comuna 13 to Valenciano.
The recent arrest of Valenciano in Venezuela left the Comuna 13 in control of Urabeños strongman Henry de Jesus Lopez Londoño, alias “Mi Sangre” who, because of the strategic location of the western neighborhood has direct connection with the Uraba region.
According to El Tiempo, Mi Sangre has been responsible for stirring up unrest among neighborhood gangs around the city, known as “combos,” as well as issuing threats to journalists seeking to publicise these events.
Local reports show an increase in violence in the neighborhoods surrounding the Comuna 13, which could indicate the Urabeños are expanding their territory.
Over recent decades, Medellin has seen several waves of violence related to disputes between cartels, guerrilla groups and paramilitary organizations over control of the city, which connects several of Colombia’s coca cultivating regions with coastal areas from which drugs are transported to Central America and the U.S.
