Two suspects in the kidnapping of the parents of Liverpool soccer player Luis Diaz were ordered sent to prison by a judge, Colombia's Prosecutor's Office said Wednesday, accusing one of the men of being the link to a person close to the family who provided information about the victims.
Andres Alcires Bolivar and Marlon Rafael Brito are also accused of maintaining contacts with members of the National Liberation Army, or ELN, in the planning and execution of the Oct. 28 abductions in Barrancas, a town in La Guajira in Colombia's northeast of Colombia.
Diaz's parents - Luis Manuel Diaz Jimenez and Cilenis Marulanda -- were kidnapped by a unit of the ELN at a gas station by armed men on motorcycles.
Marulanda was rescued by police a few hours later, but Diaz's father was held captive for 12 days by the ELN. The father was released on Nov. 9 near the Serrania del Perija, bordering Venezuela, where facilitators from the Catholic Church and the United Nations had flown by helicopter.
Prosecutors said in a statement that Alcires Bolivar was a merchant in La Guajira who had been contacted by a member of the ELN to help him kidnap Diaz's parents. He allegedly went to Barrancas to convince "a person who was close to the Diaz family" to participate in the kidnapping and to learn about the victims' routines.
Rafael Brito allegedly helped in the logistics of the kidnapping, including planning the deception under which Diaz Jimenez and Marulanda were abducted at the gas station. Prosecutors say the soccer player's parents went there to fulfill a promise of support for the candidacy of a relative who was running for the Barrancas Council.
The two men have denied involvement in the kidnapping and other charges.
Diaz plays from the English club Liverpool and Colombia's national soccer team.
After the kidnapping, special forces were deployed to search for Diaz's father in a mountain range that straddles Colombia and Venezuela. Police also offered a US$48,000 reward for information that led to him.
The ELN acknowledged the kidnapping, saying it was a mistake and that its top leadership had ordered the father's release.
Diaz's parents were taken amid peace negotiations between Colombia's government and the guerrilla group.
Kansas could soon offer up to US$5 million in grants for schools to outfit surveillance cameras with artificial intelligence systems that can spot people carrying guns. But the governor needs to approve the expenditures and the schools must meet some very specific criteria.
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Many foods fall under the category of ultraprocessed foods, depending on their exact ingredients. This type of food has been studied a lot lately, and the results aren’t great.
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After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
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The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
The Winnipeg trial of admitted serial killer Jeremy Skibicki is expected to hear testimony today from a police officer who examined video surveillance.
Lawyers for Montreal's McGill University are in court this morning seeking an injunction to dismantle the pro-Palestinian encampment that has been on its downtown campus since last month.
An encampment is now set up outside a Maritime university in solidarity with Palestinian people in Gaza amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
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The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
Heavy rains and torrents of cold lava and mud flowing down a volcano's slopes on Indonesia’s Sumatra island triggered flash floods that killed at least 37 people and more than a dozen others were missing, officials said Sunday.
When two U.S. fighter jets recently faced off in a dogfight in California, only one was piloted by a human.
A tiny contingent of Duke University graduates opposed pro-Israel comedian Jerry Seinfeld speaking at their commencement in North Carolina Sunday, with about 30 of the 7,000 students leaving their seats and chanting "free Palestine" amid a mix of boos and cheers.
Millions of Indians across 96 constituencies began casting their ballots on Monday as the country's gigantic, six-week-long election edges past its halfway mark. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third straight term with an eye on winning a supermajority in Parliament.
The UN food agency estimated that unusually heavy seasonal rains in Afghanistan have left more than 300 people dead and thousands of houses destroyed.
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
The criminal trial of Pat King, one of the most prominent figures associated with the 2022 Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa, is expected to begin Monday.
Canada’s foreign affairs minister is embarking on a five-day trip to the Middle East and the Mediterranean where she will focus on peacekeeping and aid.
Amid significant criticism from advocates, Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities Minister Kamal Khera is defending her government's long-promised, newly unveiled Canada Disability Benefit, calling the funds an "initial step," but without laying out a timeline for future expansion of the program.
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When you're picking something up from the floor or bending over to tie your shoe laces, you're performing "the hinge move," according to movement trainers.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis and vehicle components.
Justin Trudeau says Meta is making billions off people, but taking no responsibility for the well-being of communities they profit from.
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
A man who was bitten by two sharks in the Bahamas said Thursday he's 'thankful that I'm here' while sharing his story of survival.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
Matthew Rankin says he's proud to attend this year's Cannes Film Festival with fellow Winnipeg-born director Guy Maddin -- especially since his hometown's indie film scene often gets overlooked.
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Brock Boeser had two goals and an assist, and the Vancouver Canucks hung on for a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series.
Alek Manoah allowed three runs — all unearned — over seven innings to lower his earned-run average from 13.50 to 4.91 in his best outing of the year. He allowed four hits and a walk, striking out six.
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The Biden administration plans to impose major new tariffs on electric vehicles, semiconductors, solar equipment and medical supplies imported from China, according to a U.S. official and another person familiar with the plan.
Tesla will spend more than US$500 million to expand its fast-charging network, CEO Elon Musk said on Friday, days after abruptly laying off employees who were running the business.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.
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Sunday marked day one of training camp for the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Saskatoon. The team was ecstatic to be back on the field for another year with quarterback Trevor Harris being no exception.
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No injuries were reported after a garage fire spread into a vehicle early Sunday morning in the city’s east end.
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Young mother was killed in a two-vehicle crash in Innisfil Saturday morning.
A garbage fire was attended to by Collingwood firefighters Monday.
A Credit Valley Conservation van was stolen from the Island Lake Conservation site.
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The temperature will be well above normal in Windsor-Essex on Monday as rain showers continue throughout the day.
Days after four people were charged in an underage prostitution investigation, it's been learned that two of the accused are reportedly employed by the University of Windsor and a high school in Essex.
A fast-growing wildfire near Fort Nelson, B.C., that has forced thousands to flee their homes could spread into the town itself, the B.C. Wildfire Service warned.
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Thousands of messages were sent between a teenage girl in the U.S. and an Alberta man posing as a young boy, a police investigation has revealed.
After a dry winter, southern Alberta farmers were expecting it to be another tough growing season.
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One expert says we might see a little bit of a dip, even still, he’s expecting another big cruise ship season on the Great Lakes, particularly when it comes to ports in northeastern Ontario.
Highlights of the views of the northern lights display in northern Ontario on Friday night and Saturday morning.
Ontario’s police watchdog is investigating after a Sault Ste. Marie Police Service officer shot a 37-year-old man in the city’s west end on Saturday night.
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Health officials say there is an outbreak of whooping cough in eastern Newfoundland.
Ontario Provincial Police are facing tough questions about their search for a missing Newfoundland trucker whose rig was found two weeks ago in Ontario, then sent back to Newfoundland, where his body was found Monday in the trailer.
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