López, repeat offender
Juan Carlos López, a Colombian drug trafficker known by the alias “Sobrino,” was extradited to the United States in 2013. A recent journalistic investigation asserts that he backed the 2022 presidential campaign, with the current president then ruling from Casanare, in the country’s eastern region. This claim is presented as the outcome of a probe announced in the media over the weekend.
The Noticias Caracol report cites wiretaps involving López’s associates and members of his criminal network, along with evidence gathered by prosecutors, to portray López and his wife, Sandra Navarro, as playing a central role in organizing logistics for Petro’s campaign in Casanare. The study suggests that Navarro was linked to the campaign operations in that department.
According to the report, Navarro participated in activities connected to Petro’s Casanare campaign, and members of Colombia Humana, the presidential party, were said to be aware of López’s criminal past and his family ties. The narrative indicates a campaign event was reportedly held at López’s residence, a location where López had previously faced sentencing for drug trafficking in the United States after serving his punishment in Colombia.
The disclosure comes two weeks after Nicolás Petro Burgos, the president’s eldest son, admitted financial dealings before the courts. Prosecutors allegedly identified funds of illegal origin that purportedly entered the 2022 presidential campaign, though the president maintained that he had no knowledge of such matters.
The National Electoral Council (CNE) is urged to examine whether the campaign benefited from those funds and to determine whether the candidate at the time had knowledge of their origin.
López, repeat offender
The drug trafficker López was detained again last year while leading a criminal gang, shortly after Petro’s election victory was announced. Reports also indicate that López’s partner, who was then affiliated with Colombia Humana, participated in supporting the campaign in Casanare alongside him.
Video footage from campaign events, apparently recorded in the rural areas of Yopal, the capital of Casanare, backs up these claims. The recordings were uncovered by Noticias Caracol and are said to show López and Navarro in campaign-related settings.
Additionally, Fabio Vargas, a member of Colombia Humana, is reported to have confirmed that party members in the department were aware of López and Navarro, according to audio aired by the broadcaster as part of its coverage.
Peter’s Defense
In response to the coverage, the president criticized Noticias Caracol and dismissed the report as false. He stated that he never attended events in Yopal and denied any contributions from Casanare. He asserted that the individuals named in the report were not leaders within Colombia Humana or the governing coalition known as Pacto Histórico.
Petro also clarified that the campaign in Casanare was led by someone named Sonia Bernal, not Sonia Navarro, and urged Colombia Humana to pursue judicial action in response to the journalistic disclosure. The president’s position emphasizes a distinction between individuals involved and the leadership of the campaign in Casanare.