The investigation also seeks to clarify the mention of retired General William René Salamanca in the corruption case involving alias ‘Papá Pitufo’.
A meeting between William Andrés Salamanca Dechner, son of the former Police Director, General William René Salamanca, and Andrés Vanegas Fernández, a prominent businessman tied to a firm seeking to secure a multi-million contract with the institution, has raised questions among investigators and members of President Petro’s government.
The meeting took place during the most recent “For the Colombian Police” race held in Miami, where Salamanca Dechner and the businessman were photographed together several times.
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According to information published by El Tiempo, the deal, valued at 11.4 billion pesos, is one of the reasons why General Salamanca resigned as Police Director during the cabinet reshuffle ordered by President Gustavo Petro.
“The 11.4 billion pesos in question come from the leftover funds of all the institution’s contracts,” the outlet reported.
Added to this is his mention in the case against Diego Marín, alias Papá Pitufo, wanted by authorities for smuggling, bribery, and belonging to a criminal organization.
It is also alleged that his resignation was influenced by his supposed closeness to Ecopetrol president Ricardo Roa.
Details of the ‘juicy’ contract
Regarding the 11.4 billion pesos, the Bogotá-based outlet stated that the money came from the surpluses of various police contracts and was to be used for the purchase of scanners or X-ray machines intended for the Criminal Investigation and Interpol Directorate (Dijín). The order reportedly came from the Police Planning Office, under Colonel Diana Torres.
However, Dijín reportedly rejected the acquisition, arguing that “there is a plurality of providers of these scanners and that a shortened selection process should be used instead of direct contracting.”
Despite this, the funds and procurement process were transferred to the Bogotá Metropolitan Police, and on December 27, 2024, an agreement was signed with the Fondo Rotatorio to move forward with the deal.
El Tiempo revealed that the agreement was signed by then Metropolitan Police Commander, Brigadier General José Daniel Gualdrón, and the director of the Fondo Rotatorio, Colonel Ana María Luquerna.
The Police have since launched an internal investigation to determine whether the scanner purchase was steered toward Data Tactical Management (DTM SAS), a firm linked to Vanegas.
A source reported that the institution is “verifying whether most of the requirements for this contract match the product represented by DTM.”
This would not be the first time the firm has been connected to the Police. According to the Bogotá daily, in September 2024, a memo surfaced in which the Attorney General’s Office requested an investigation into whether software procurement had been carried out directly.
It was initially revealed that the sole shareholder of the company is Venezuelan national María de los Ángeles Rangel, wife of Andrés Vanegas Fernández.
Further details suggest that the DTM contract investigation could overlap with the Papá Pitufo case. A source told El Tiempo that prosecutors are reviewing testimony from Major Peter Steven Nocua, an undercover agent in the investigation.
According to Major Nocua’s statement, a contractor by the name of Venegas was mentioned, which El Tiempo identified as businessman Andrés Vanegas Fernández.
Nocua said that in October 2023, “Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Oviedo, acting head of Bogotá’s operational control division, introduced me via an app called Silent Phone to an alleged advisor to the Police Director and told me that the advisor would message me to arrange a private meeting.”
“He told me that he had many contacts and controlled the lists of officers assigned to the Fiscal and Customs Police (Polfa). He said—word for word—that neither Colonel Puentes, the Polfa Director, nor my superior Major Sarmiento, the private secretary, managed those lists,” Nocua added.
Nocua further testified that the man said: “He worked as a contractor for the Police interception room, and also told me that I needed to change my phone every four months because conversations could be tapped. He claimed he worked for the Police Director and that I was to travel monthly to Bogotá to personally deliver him money. I told him there was no way I would do that, considering the risk of walking around Bogotá with a suitcase full of cash.”
According to the testimony published by El Tiempo, Nocua also said that Venegas claimed to work closely with the Police Director’s aide, a lieutenant colonel.
“He showed me a photograph on WhatsApp of the aide to the Director General,” said Major Peter Steven Nocua.
Authorities are verifying whether the “aide to the Director General” was Lieutenant Colonel Érika Castellanos, who at the time served as General Salamanca’s private secretary at Police headquarters.
A source revealed to the Bogotá outlet that for the X-ray procurement, a technical review was requested from the Police’s telematics division, then headed by retired Colonel Carlos Benítez Rojas, who was reportedly the partner of Lieutenant Colonel Érika Castellanos.
It also emerged that Benítez later became head of prevention and control at Cenit, an Ecopetrol subsidiary, and that Ecopetrol sponsored the Miami race.
“For Colonel Benítez to enter Cenit, his predecessor, retired General Hugo Casas Velásquez, was moved to become head of security at Ecopetrol. Casas is the in-law of General Salamanca,” a National Intelligence Directorate (DNI) source told the outlet.