Two Colombian nationals have been sentenced in a federal court in Miami for their roles in the 2021 car bombing that injured three U.S. Army soldiers in Colombia. According to Local 10, the attack took place near the Colombia-Venezuela border at the Colombian 30th Army Brigade Base in Cúcuta. The sentenced individuals are Andres Fernando Medina Rodriguez, a former Colombian Army officer, and Ciro Alfonso Gutierrez Ballesteros, affiliated with a group once part of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
Medina Rodriguez, 40, was sentenced to 35 years in prison, and Gutierrez Ballesteros, 32, received 30 years. Both were convicted for a car bomb attack near Venezuela that injured 44 Colombian military members. The attack involved Medina Rodriguez planting a timed bomb in a white Toyota. They pleaded guilty to charges related to plotting to murder U.S. soldiers, which could have led to life sentences. U.S. District Judge Roy Altman handed down the sentences, and FBI special agent Jeffrey B. Veltri praised the international cooperation that led to their convictions.
The indictment detailed by the Miami Herald outlines that Medina Rodriguez used his status as a medically discharged officer to gain access to the military base for surveillance in planning the bombing. Funding from Gutierrez Ballesteros enabled Medina Rodriguez to purchase a vehicle in Venezuela, which was then equipped with explosives prior to the deadly attack. As the indictment states, the plan unfolded with Medina Rodriguez parking the rigged SUV at a strategic location on the base before fleeing with Gutierrez Ballesteros on a motorcycle, moments before the explosion.
The successful convictions resulted from a joint investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, and the Colombian National Police. U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe commented, "As seen by the prison sentences imposed upon defendants Medina Rodriguez and Gutierrez Ballesteros today, individuals who threaten the safety and security of the United States and our fellow Americans will face the full force of our nation’s criminal justice system," on a report by Local 10.
