Cousin of drug trafficker and paramilitary ‘Don Mario’ has surrendered to justice

With his lawyers, Jhon Henry González Herrera, alias middle lipappeared before authorities in Barranquilla, Atlántico, on February 23, after remaining out of the country for at least 18 months.

Meanwhile, anyone accused by the prosecution of being the chief financial officer of drug trafficker Daniel Rendón Herrera aka “Don Mario”, is said to have been in Spain, Italy, France and the United Arab Emirates, keeping a low profile , because apparently the Colombian authorities were looking for him.

However, through his lawyer, González Herrera assured that he was never a fugitive from justice and even less hidden from the authorities; on the contrary, assured the lawyer, since 2020 he has repeatedly requested that the public prosecutor’s office inform him of his status as an accused, in order to be heard and to exercise his right to defense with full guarantees. to which you are entitled.

‘Medio Labio’ is the cousin of Daniel Rendón Herrera, better known as ‘don mario‘, a former paramilitary leader with close ties to drug trafficking, well known for leading the criminal group Los Urabeños, later renamed gulf clan.

Indeed, according to the authorities, when Don Mario was captured and extradited to the United States, Medio Labio assumed part of his illegal activities in his place; In addition, he would have gained the confidence of several drug traffickers, and would have even managed the assets of the brothers. Mejia Muneraknown as Twinswho were at the head of a criminal organization called The snow-capped peaks.

For his part, Jhon Henry González Herrera assured that he had and had no connection with drug trafficking or any criminal organization, according to what he claims to have been certified by the Attorney General’s office itself in a resolution of 2010. He also maintains that he has no connection with the Clan del Golfo and, on the contrary, that he is considered a victim of this criminal organization, since his family was murdered during the famous ” Amalfi massacre” by order of the Clan del Golfo under the command of the pseudonym “Otoniel”.

In 2008, González Herrera was arrested by Dijín agents in the middle of a public road in Santa Marta, wanted by the Villavicencio public prosecutor’s office for the offenses of trafficking, manufacturing and possession of narcotics; and the manufacture and trafficking of firearms or ammunition.

According to the prosecution, “at least from the first half of 2009 to the second half of 2021, the FGN documented that Mr. JOHN HENRY GONZÁLEZ HERRERA, alias medio labio, agreed with Hipólito Mendoza Zea, Fabio Antonio Villalba González, César Augusto Ortega Ramírez (approximately since the first half of 2015) and with César Augusto Rincón González (approximately since the first half of 2019) for the creation and implementation of a criminal enterprise with a clear distribution of roles, spirit of permanence over time, and properly hierarchical, oriented towards the commission of undetermined but determinable crimes in this case, conspiracy to commit a crime, money laundering and illicit enrichment of individuals, creating a whole criminal subcontracting under the orders of JOHN HENRY GONZÁLEZ HERRERA alias medio labio”.

In July 2020, the Villavicencio Specialized Asset Forfeiture Circuit Court initiated asset forfeiture proceedings against several González Herrera properties located in Yopa, Casanare, and in November of the same year authorities arrested Laura Vanessa Villalba González, believed to be the romantic partner of González Herrera, accused of belonging to an illegal network that allegedly laundered just over 20,000 million pesos for the Gulf clan and La Oficina

According to the prosecution, Villalba González allegedly purchased and sold property for more than 2,295 million pesos. For this reason, a prosecutor Specialized Department against Money Laundering (DECLA) charged him with crimes of laundering money from illicit enrichment. The accused did not accept the charges.

In October 2021, authorities dismantled a criminal network, allegedly linked to Medio Labio, accused of laundering assets for the gulf clan. During the operation, assets worth more than 250,000 million pesos were seized, located in Antioquia, Atlántico, Boyacá, Risaralda, Quindío, Meta, Vichada and Bogotá.

This structure had professionals in public accounting, civil engineering and business administration, who were responsible for drafting the statutes and modifying the accounting registers in order to avoid tracking down the illegal activities of the authorities. They showed “false credit histories or financially viable plans to facilitate the authorization of large sums of money loans from public companies in the financial sector”, according to the authorities.

González Herrera’s lawyer acknowledged that in the past criminal proceedings had been initiated against his client, but specified that “he was completely and absolutely acquitted”. According to the lawyer, on March 1, 2023, a guarantee control judge decided not to impose an insurance measure against Jhon Henry González Herrera, despite the request of the prosecution, considering that he does not constitute a danger to the community and that there is also no risk of non-appearance, for which the indicated party will exercise his right to defense in complete freedom.

Finally, the lawyer assured that it is not true that they seek to conclude any prior agreement with the prosecution.