Another Colombian police officer is sentenced for the death of student Javier Ordóñez

( Spanish) — A Colombian police patrolman was convicted of the crimes of homicide and torture for his participation in the events in which law student Javier Ordóñez died in September 2020 in Bogotá, the Attorney General’s Office reported this Friday.

The specialized director against human rights violations, Hugo Tovar Pérez, said that a Bogotá judge issued the ruling, which reaches Harvy Rodríguez, who was held responsible for the crimes of homicide and torture, both considered aggravated conduct under Colombian law. . Rodríguez had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges.

“A prosecutor from the Specialized Directorate against Human Rights violations demonstrated that the defendant participated in the police procedure in which Mr. Ordóñez Bermúdez was violently reduced and subjected to several electric shocks caused by a taser-type device,” Tovar added. Perez.

According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the patrolman’s actions were disproportionate.

It is expected that next June the sentence that Rodríguez must serve will be announced.

In April 2021, Colombian National Police patrolman Juan Camilo Lloreda Cubillos was sentenced to 20 years in prison for this same case.

The case of Javier Ordóñez

Ordóñez, 43, died after police officers apprehended him and subdued him on the ground using electroshock pistols. In a video that went viral on social networks, it is observed that they asked him to put his hands behind his back, while he cried several times that “please” stop. In September of that year, the incident sparked massive protests against police brutality in Colombia.

The statement from the Prosecutor’s Office on Rodríguez’s conviction adds that the elements collected indicate that the Police units carried out a procedure in front of Ordóñez’s residence and coordinated his transfer to a police headquarters in the town of Engativá. At that time, the “performances” that caused the death of the victim occurred.

The Prosecutor’s Office cites a Forensic Medicine autopsy report that indicates that there were other physical attacks that led to the death of the law student.