The abrupt removal of a Colombian National Police general has sparked scrutiny of the government of President Gustavo Petro. The case centers around allegations that someone attempted to sabotage a recent meeting between Petro and former U.S. President Donald Trump, raising questions about political motivations and potential conspiracies within the Colombian government. The situation underscores the delicate balance of power and security concerns facing Petro’s administration.
On February 11, Colombia’s Ministry of Defense issued a decree calling for Brigadier General Edwin Urrego Pedraza to retire from active duty. The move followed accusations by Petro that someone attempted to introduce psychoactive substances into his vehicle with the intention of disrupting his meeting with Trump the previous week. While Petro has been limited in details and Urrego has denied any wrongdoing, the dismissal of a high-ranking officer has drawn national attention, particularly as the country grapples with unprecedented flooding and prepares for an upcoming electoral cycle.
“There is a general that I ordered to be removed from the Police,” Petro said Tuesday in Montería, a city struggling with widespread flooding. “Someone gave the order, obviously not us, to set psychoactive substances in the car, with the mission of destroying the meeting with Trump,” he stated. Petro did not elaborate on how he learned of the alleged sabotage attempt, what evidence he possesses, or whether the drugs were intended for leverage in Colombia or Washington.
Doubts have emerged regarding the report that led to the dismissal of Urrego and Colonel Óscar Moreno, and questions have arisen about the interests driving the decision. Key questions remain unanswered: Was there a genuine attempt to implicate Petro? What evidence was used to end the career and reputation of the officer allegedly behind the sabotage? Who compiled the report that triggered the scandal? The situation has evolved into a web of conspiracy theories, with many involved distancing themselves from the matter. Sources close to the presidency have begun to suggest that a “mistake” may have been made.
Several theories have circulated in the media, with many pointing to Interior Minister Armando Benedetti as potentially orchestrating the plan to remove a general who reportedly made him uncomfortable. However, sources indicate that Urrego had other enemies with motives to target him. “It’s too easy not only to gain you out of the way, but to end your reputation, leaving you helpless and discredited,” one source familiar with the case lamented.
The alleged attempt to sabotage the meeting with Trump has taken a backseat to the internal political maneuvering. Two key ministers, who learned of the case through press reports, have cast doubt on the sabotage theory. The Minister of Defense, Urrego’s superior, was cautious not to contradict the president’s version of events but warned on Caracol Radio: “With disinformation, honors and careers are affected.” He added, “It is very serious that this turns out to be true, but it would be supremely serious if it were not.”
Outgoing Justice Minister Andrés Idárraga has been more direct in his skepticism. He expressed indignation that the allegations have been linked to his previous role as Secretary of Presidential Transparency – where the initial anonymous report alleging the sabotage was received – and asserted to EL PAÍS that the case never crossed his desk. Idárraga also stated that he was aware of discontent with Urrego’s actions among high-ranking executive officials. “There was disagreement about his actions. And obviously, they were asking for him to be removed,” he said. He declined to identify who was dissatisfied with the general, suggesting that someone may have intentionally misled the president.
—Who?
—This could be a betrayal of the President of the Republic by people who claim to be loyal to him.
—For what?
—They have wanted to stay close, even at the cost of telling him lies.
The information that prompted Petro to raise the scandal during a Council of Ministers meeting last Tuesday originated from an anonymous email alerting him to a supposed plot against him and Benedetti. The document, received through the Colombia Anti-Corruption Portal, was transformed into a presentation of slides that linked Urrego to alleged irregularities, without any direct connection to the original complaint. A comprehensive intelligence report on the case is said to exist within the National Intelligence Directorate (DNI), but has not been made public. The slides, however, have raised suspicions due to their inconsistencies.
The scandal initially sparked speculation about potential retaliation from Benedetti, as Urrego led the police operation that raided his home in Barranquilla in November as part of a corruption investigation. The raid reportedly angered the minister. Petro fueled this theory when he indirectly referenced the general to Benedetti, saying, “That has to do with you. They raided your house. That’s what it was for.” Urrego told a newspaper last week that there was an intention to remove him from the police force, potentially due to this and other cases that had upset the minister.
Beyond the inconsistencies, the presentation included a mention that further complicated the case. Without context, it referenced a July 2024 operation in which several pieces of technology were seized from a convoy carrying Alexander Díaz Mendoza, alias Calarcá Córdoba, a commander of a dissident group with whom the government is holding peace talks. A year and a half after the operation, an investigative report by Noticias Caracol revealed that conversations found on the seized devices suggested that Wilmar Mejía, director of Intelligence at the DNI, and General Juan Miguel Huertas, then commander of Army Personnel, allegedly leaked classified information to the armed group.
Notably, General Urrego was deputy director of the Dijín – the police judicial branch – when that institution led the operation against Calarcá. Colonel Óscar Moreno (the other officer implicated in the alleged sabotage) was responsible for the operation. The mention of this connection suddenly opened a new insinuation of retaliation, this time from Mejía and Huertas against Urrego, not for the operation itself, but for the leak.
Once again, the conspiracy was fueled by its own protagonists. This weekend, Mejía, who also claims to be the victim of a plot against him, indirectly suggested on X that General Urrego and Colonel Moreno may have leaked the information that tarnished his reputation. “As custodians of judicial or intelligence information, Urrego and Moreno had a duty to ensure its confidentiality and secrecy […] The disclosure of such information to third parties suggests possible negligence or even intentional manipulation of the information,” he wrote. Urrego vehemently denies any leaks.
But before the connection between Mejía and Huertas could be fully clarified, another potential enemy of Urrego emerged: César Augusto Ortiz, a retired police major who, until December, was a counterintelligence officer at the DNI. Before that, Ortiz was the head of the Sijín, the police judicial branch, in the department of La Guajira. He was removed from the institution amid two criminal complaints for drug trafficking and smuggling in that region. An internal source at the DNI claims that General Urrego orchestrated his removal from the police in 2023 due to those investigations. “Ortiz was part of the team working on the report against Urrego” along with former DNI director Jorge Lemus, this source added.
The sequence of events reveals, in any case, the fragility of any reputation in Colombia. An intelligence report, with no further evidence than an anonymous tip and episodes unrelated to the original complaint, was enough to precipitate the dismissal of two high-ranking police officers over allegations they deny. There was no polygraph test or known disciplinary investigation before their abrupt removal from office.
Amid all the questions surrounding this case, one stands out: if the sabotage allegations lose credibility, what truly motivated General Urrego’s removal? And who pushed for it? In this episode, the silences weigh as heavily as the alleged evidence. And what remains unexplained is becoming more telling than what has been explained.
