Colombia Male 'Prostitution Ring' Eyewitness Escapes From Kidnappers
Colombian whistleblower police captain Anyelo Palacios escaped his captors and was found unscathed a day after he was kidnapped but suspects' identities have yet to be revealed.
Palacios was instrumental to the revelation of a long-running male prostitution ring that linked several high-ranking police officials, including Police Chief Rodolfo Palomino.
Because of this, he was treated as a key witness to the case, which also dragged politicians into embarrassment and possible imprisonment.
The Kidnapping
Authorities said Palacios was driving his 76-year-old stepfather, Arcilio Ortíz Valero, on Saturday evening in Caliche in the northeastern province of Santander when four armed men riding two motorcycles overtook their vehicle.
Then, the riding tandem doubled back, overpowered and took the police captain against his will.
According to Ortíz, the kidnappers demanded him to get out of the vehicle while assuring that his stepson would be returned within an hour.
After the hour passed with Palacios nowhere to be found, Ortíz decided to report the kidnapping incident to authorities
The Motive
As key witness to a big scandal, it is not unexpected for Palacios to be a target of violence and other forms of retaliation.
Since Colombia began the peace talks with FARC rebels, kidnapping records had become a lot less rampant, leaving only small and isolated cases.
With regards to Palacio's abduction, some reports speculate that the kidnapping might be related to the prostitution ring case where he pinpointed high profile personalities as suspects and accessories to the crime.
While authorities have yet to determine the reason for his capture, Colombian Police Chief General Jorge Hernando Nieto explained that they "are not ruling anything out" just yet.
"We are investigating in order to find out the motive behind the facts," Nieto said.
"The Fellowship of the Ring"
Palacios took front and center in the male prostitution ring probe after the Colombian radio station La F.M. posted a video he secretly took in 2008 that implicated then-Senator Carlos Ferro in the scandal.
While he was not seen in the footage, his voice matched that of the person speaking with the former senator.
Admitting that he was the one who shot the clip, Palacios then admitted to being subjected to forced sexual intercourse while he was still a young cadet.
According to him, high-ranking officials used their positions to coerce young cadets like him to engage in sexual intercourse against their will.
Among the big names dragged in the controversy are former Senator Carlos Ferro and former Police Chief Rodolfo Palomino who both stepped down from office while denying the allegations.
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