Colombia: Operation Against 'El Guacho' Kills Six Militants

Nearly six militants who are part of the criminal group Oliver Sinisterra Front led by “Guacho” were killed in an operation carried out by the military in the Colombian municipality of Tumaco on the boarder of Ecuador, local media Tuesdasy reported.  

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Per El Tiempo, the operation was carried out by troops from the Hércules Joint Task Force in the Guayacana farmhouse that is part of the municipality of Tumaco, department of Nariño, bordering Ecuador.

In addition to the death of the six fighters, two other militants were also captured. In the offensive against "Guacho" and his men, the Colombian army seized eleven rifles, two pistols, communications material and documents that were analyzed by the military intelligence.   

The Oliver Sinisterra Front kidnapped three journalists in March and later executed them when the Ecuadorean government failed to meet their demands. They later kidnapped a couple and there has not been much information about them except speculations.

In April, The Oliver Sinisterra Front carried out the kidnapping and killing of staff members of Ecuador's newspaper, El Comercio, as well as the placement of explosives that caused the death of four soldiers and dozens of wounded in the province of Esmeraldas (Ecuador).  

Last week, eleven of its members were killed in an operation carried out by the military in the department of Caquetá (south).

The Oliver Sinisterra Front is described by Colombian authorities as a dissident group from the Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) following the peace process between FARC and the Colombian government.

It's led by Walter Patricio Artizala Vernaza, also known as “el Guacho,” and has no political connection with the political party formed after the demobilization of the FARC.