Night of riot in Colombia after the death of a man in a police blunder

Bogota experienced a night of violence after the death of Javier Ordonez following his arrest by the police.

AP Photo / Ivan Valencia

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

In Colombia, violent riots broke out this Wednesday evening, September 9 in the capital Bogota and in other regions of the country after what amounts to a serious police blunder.

On Wednesday morning, a Colombian died after receiving repeated electric shocks from two police officers who immobilized him on the ground.

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The scene, filmed by a witness and broadcast on social networks, shocked Colombian public opinion.

The images are indeed extremely violent.

We see Javier Ordonez, a forty-year-old lawyer father of two children, belly down, immobilized by two police officers kneeling on his back who give him at least 10 long shocks with their electric pulse pistols.

The cries of the victim are mingled with those of the witnesses: all begging the police to stop. 

What happened before and after this scene remains unclear.

Javier Ordonez was brought to the police station, then a few hours later to the hospital where the doctors could only confirm his death.

The Colombian political class, from the mayor of Bogota to

President Ivan Duque

, unanimously denounced this tragedy.

An investigation was opened against the two police officers.

Yet in the evening, thousands of Colombians took to the streets across the country to protest this new case of police violence.

The demonstrations turned into a riot.

In clashes between protesters and the police, five people were killed last night and 80 others injured, including 30 police officers.

In total, 53 police stations were vandalized. 

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