A major criminal leader in Colombia’s Caribbean region has been killed in a police raid that relied heavily on intelligence supplied by the United States. Naín Andrés Pérez Toncel, known by the alias “Bendito Menor” (“Blessed Junior”), died early Friday during an operation near the Almirante Padilla airport in Riohacha, a coastal city in the La Guajira department near Colombia’s border with Venezuela.
According to reporting from EL TIEMPO, the operation had been building for hours. Starting Thursday night, helicopters patrolled the Troncal del Caribe highway and several areas of La Guajira as authorities closed in. US intelligence agencies had reportedly helped pinpoint the exact location where Pérez Toncel was hiding with his partner, Rosa Angélica Tarazona, alias “la Bebecita” (“the Little Baby”). Colombian special police units then sealed off the area before storming the property.
Surveillance had shown the couple was trying to relocate, but they were unable to escape before commandos arrived. A firefight broke out during the raid, killing both Pérez Toncel and Tarazona, along with two other men described as members of his security detail. All four bodies remained at the scene Friday morning as forensic and judicial teams worked the site.
Pérez Toncel had been considered a high-value target linked to violent crimes, including homicides and extortion, across Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Officials were expected to formally address the operation’s outcome at the scene.
Read the full investigation at eltiempo.com.
Source: El cerco sobre alias Bendito Menor: inteligencia de EE. UU., helicópteros y el asalto final de comandos de la Policía (eltiempo.com). English version produced with AI assistance.
Image: East Riding Archives, CC0 1.0 (via Openverse).