Colombia: New Massacre Leaves 5 Dead and One Injured

Colombia's Defense Minister Diego Molano on Wednesday reported that at least five coffee pickers were killed and one man was wounded in an armed attack in the Antioquia Department.

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"The attack occurred on Tuesday around 21h00 local time on a coffee farm in the La Ermita village," Molano explained, adding that local authorities are identifying the victims.

A survivor told local outlets that five hooded men armed with long-range weapons intimidated the farmers and locked them in a room to shoot them.

The corpses show signs of torture, gunshots, and stab wounds. The injured, who was transferred to a medical center, is in critical health condition.

Local police officers are deployed at the scene to investigate the facts. Preliminary data show that the massacre's motive may have been territorial issues related to drug trafficking in the Taparto municipality.

"It seems the killers were inquiring with the victims about the location of the drugs that were to be commercialized in that municipality," the police stated.

Since the beginning of the year, 22 people have been killed in the Andes municipality, a territory controlled by 'Gulf Clan', 'La Guadalupe', and 'Las Terrazas' criminal gangs.