Two men rape an older adult, but judge releases them

In the rural area of Neiva, there was a case of sexual abuse that has the inhabitants of this sector dismayed. According to information from the authorities, an adult over 76 years old and residing in the district of Guacirco was raped while he was intoxicated.

The police claimed that the rape was recorded when the older adult was on his way to his place of residence and was intercepted by two subjects, who gave him hallucinogens in a dark alley, then took him to his own home where he was abused.

Colonel Diego Fernando Vasquez Argüello, commander of the Metropolitan Police of Neiva, gave details of what happened:

Once the case was known, the authorities started an operation to find the culprits, who were captured hours later. This is Alejandro Comba Guzmán, 44, and Arley Charry Rivera, 20 years old.

“Thanks to the complaint of the victim and the people residing in the sector and in coordination with the Public Prosecutor's Office, different activities of the Judicial Police were carried out such as interviews with witnesses, inspection of the scene, and legal medical evaluation, these two individuals were individualized and judicialized,” said the official.

Despite the seriousness of the facts, the judge for the control of guarantees in the region considered that the measure of custodial assurance was not appropriate, since none of the prisoners had judicial notes, and therefore did not pose a danger to society.

WTO data show that between 1959 and 2020 there were 15,760 victims of sexual violence throughout the country, in the context of the armed conflict. 61.8 per cent of victims are women and 30.8 per cent are girls and adolescents (both categories account for 92.6 per cent of the total). The most common age range for people who have suffered this type of abuse is between 14 and 17 years.

Of the victims of sexual violence with ethnic affiliation, 87.36 per cent are people of African descent, 12.14 per cent are indigenous people, 0.29 per cent are Palenqueras and 0.21 per cent are Roma people.

It is also necessary to emphasize in this context that people with different gender identities and sexual orientations — lesbian women, gay men, transsexual, bisexual or intersex people — have suffered different repertoires of sexual violence in the context of the armed conflict, seeking to impose a social order in which they do not have there is room for ways of life that depart from heterosexuality.

These data can be found in detail on the memorial board on sexual violence in the armed conflict.

Sexual violence encompasses any act of a sexual nature imposed through the use of force, coercion, psychological oppression, abuse of power or fear of violence.

Although rape is the most common form, this type of violence includes forced nudity, sexual harassment, abuse and exploitation, sterilization, forced pregnancy and abortion, mutilation of sexual organs, threats of sexual content, sexual torture practices and the obligation to witness sexual acts. The mechanisms also involve persuasion, threat, coercion, blackmail, intimidation, taking advantage of power relations or falling in love.

On the other hand, according to the data recorded in the surveillance system for domestic violence, child abuse and sexual violence (SIVIM), there is a statistically significant annual increase in the rate of sexual violence in the Capital District, with an annual percentage change of 8.86% between the years (Joinpoint version 4.6.0.0). In the period 2012 to 2020, 51,453 cases of sexual violence were reported. In 2020, the estimated rate for the city is 91.5 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

In the same year, 7,669 cases of sexual violence were reported, 9.5 per cent more than in the previous year. In 83.7% the victims were women and 16% men showing a 4 to 1 relationship, that is, for every 4 women assaulted, they violate one man.

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