"Veneno," the top leader of the Erlín Pino Duarte substructure of the Gulf Clan, has been captured in Bolívar

In a joint, interagency operation involving troops from the National Army’s 9th Rapid Deployment Force and 1st Aviation Mobility and Maneuver Battalion, the Caribbean Air-Naval Group, the Marine Riverine Battalion, the National Police, and the Attorney General’s Office, the arrest warrant against alias Veneno—identified as the top leader of the Erlín Pino Duarte Sub-structure of the Gulf Clan organized armed group (GAO) in the department of Bolívar—was successfully executed.

During the operation carried out in the rural village of Regencia, in the municipality of Montecristo, authorities seized a pistol, two magazines, a large quantity of ammunition, and documents of high value to military intelligence.

According to investigations, alias Veneno had a criminal history spanning more than seven years within this organization. In 2019, he assumed the role of financial leader of the Manuel José Gaitán Sub-structure; subsequently, between 2020 and 2024, he served as a pseudo-political leader in various sub-structures.

In early 2026, he was appointed as the main leader of the Erlín Pino Duarte Sub-structure, due to his leadership skills and experience within the criminal organization.

This individual is credited with planning and coordinating terrorist actions against law enforcement and the civilian population over the past year, notably including, in April 2025, the coordination of an ambush against a Colombian Navy riverine unit on the Cauca River and an attack against the National Police in Pasacaballos, Bolívar.

In late April and May 2025, he orchestrated attacks against Navy units in Achí and the detonation of two improvised explosive devices against National Army troops in the Caño Méjico and Bomba sectors in southern Bolívar.

In January 2026, he coordinated armed attacks against military units conducting territorial control operations in the municipality of Santa Rosa del Sur, Bolívar.

The capture of alias Veneno has significantly disrupted this criminal organization’s chain of command, undermining its expansion plans in the region. Likewise, it has disrupted its sources of illegal funding—derived from drug trafficking and extortion—as well as the financial support networks it maintained with regional criminal structures.

Similarly, the weakening of this substructure helps mitigate the armed confrontations it has with the ELN—a situation that has led to massive forced displacements and harm to the civilian population in the southern part of Bolívar Department.

The detainee and the seized military equipment were handed over to the competent authorities to proceed with the respective legal proceedings.
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The National Army reaffirms its commitment to the security and peace of mind of the residents of the department of Bolívar through the ongoing conduct of operations aimed at weakening criminal structures that seek to undermine the constitutional order and harm the well-being of communities.