List of serial killers in Colombia

A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them.[1][2] The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines serial killing as "a series of two or more murders, committed as separate events, usually, but not always, by one offender acting alone".[2][3]

Identified serial killers

Name Years active Proven victims Possible victims Status Notes Ref
Andrés Leonardo Achipiz 2009–2013 12 35 Incarcerated Known as "The Fish"; psychopathic hired killer who killed in Bogotá involved in the drug trade [4]
José William Aranguren 1956–1964 115 115 Killed in a shootout with law enforcement Bandit who murdered people across three municipalities, together with three accomplices [5]
Daniel Camargo Barbosa 1974–1986 72 180 Murdered in prison by a victim's relative Known as "The Sadist of El Charquito"; raped and murdered young girls across Colombia and Ecuador [6]
Manuel Octavio Bermúdez 1999–2003 21 50+ 56 years; commuted to 26 years Known as "The Monster of the Cane Fields"; raped and murdered children in rural Valle del Cauca [7]
Cristopher Chávez Cuellar 1990s–2015 6 15+ 40 years Known as "The Soulless"; murdered various people around three municipalities, including three underage brothers [8]
María Concepción Ladino 1994–1998 6 6 40 years Known as "The Killer Witch"; fraudster who poisoned victims she had defrauded [9]
Luis Garavito 1992–1999 142 193+ Died in prison Known as "The Beast"; tortured, raped, mutilated and murdered children across Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela [10]
Sandra Giraldo 2008–2011 3 3+ Incarcerated Together with Emilsen Rojas and several accomplices, she led "The Black Widow Gang"; defrauded and poisoned men for their life insurance policies [11]
Pedro López 1969–1980 110 350+ Fugitive Known as "The Monster of the Andes"; raped and killed young girls across Colombia, Ecuador and Peru [12]
Luis Alberto Malagón Suárez 1995–2001 6 6+ Incarcerated Known as "The Sadist of Rincón"; kidnapped, raped, and killed five girls from 1995 to 1997 in Suba, and later killed his wife [13]
Tomás Maldonado Cera 2002–2018 7 10 Incarcerated Known as "The Satanist"; murdered victims on or around Halloween night, then carved Satanic symbols on their bodies [14]
Jaime Iván Martínez 2005–2016 4 25 42 years Known as "The Guarne Killer"; strangled young children and his wife in Guarne; suspected in other murders [15]
Élver James Melchor Bañol 1990s–2019 4 4 60 years Known as "The Predator of Picaleña"; serial child rapist who murdered a girl in Tolima after being released on parole for three similar murders and sex crimes [16]
John Jairo Moreno Torres 1997–1998 4 20 Murdered in prison by fellow inmates Known as "Johnny the Leper"; underage gang leader who murdered people who interfered with his criminal activities [17]
Yadira Narváez 2011 5 6+ 100 years Known as "The Queen of Scopolamine"; poisoned men with Carbofuran to steal their money [18]
Hernando Arturo Prada 1990s–1999 10 10+ Killed by a paramilitary squad while on the run Known as "The Angel of Death"; gang leader who killed people in Bucaramanga [19]
Luis Gregorio Ramírez Maestre 2010–2012 30 30 34 years Known as "The Monster of Tenerife"; tortured and murdered motorists he came across highways [20]
Emilsen Rojas 2008–2011 3 3+ Incarcerated Together with Sandra Giraldo and several accomplices, she led "The Black Widow Gang"; defrauded and poisoned men for their life insurance policies [21]
Esneda Ruiz Cataño 2001–2010 3 3 Incarcerated Known as "The Predator"; poisoned three husbands for their life insurance policies [22]
Efraín Sarmiento Cuero 2017–2023 3 3 Incarcerated Known as "The Beast"; murdered girlfriends across during arguments, including one during a conjugal visit in prison [23]
Fredy Armando Valencia 2012–2014 8 100+ 36 years Known as "The Monster of Monserrate"; strangled women around Monserrate, then had sex with their bodies [24]
Juan Carlos Villa 2012–2023 11 11 Incarcerated Murdered 11 people across various municipalities. [25]
Rubén Villalobos Herrera 2012–2017 9 9 Incarcerated Known as "The Black Canes Monster"; raped and murdered women in Villavicencio, then had sex with their bodies post-mortem [26]

Unidentified serial killers

Name Years active Proven victims Possible victims Regions where active Notes Ref
Monster of the Mangones 1963–1970s 30 38 Valle del Cauca Kidnapped, raped, tortured and then murdered between young boys and teenagers in Cali; investigators believe the killer to have suffered from clinical vampirism [27]

See also

References

  1. ^ Ronald M. Holmes; Stephen T. Holmes (1998). Contemporary Perspectives on Serial Murder. SAGE Publications. p. 1. ISBN 0-7619-1421-8. Retrieved 15 June 2016. Serial murder is the killing of three or more people over a period of more than 30 days, with a significant cooling-off period between the murders [...] The baseline number of three victims appears to be most common among those who are the academic authorities in the field. The time frame also appears to be an agreed-upon component of the definition.
  2. ^ a b Burkhalter Chmelir 2003, p. 1.
  3. ^ Morton 2005, p. 4, 9.
  4. ^ Correa, Juan David Ramírez (6 May 2013). "Pescadito". El Colombiano (in Spanish). Medellín. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  5. ^ Felipe Motoa Franco (17 November 2013). Remembering the 39 victims that Desquito killed in the village of La Italia (Victoría) La Patria. Accessed 4 June 2020. (in Spanish)
  6. ^ "Cronologia de los Asesinatos de Camargo Barbosa" [Timeline of the Murders of Barbosa Camargo]. Hoy (in Spanish). Ecuador. 15 November 1994. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2010.
  7. ^ "La historia de cinco asesinos en serie de Colombia" [The story of five serial killers from Colombia]. KienyKe (in Spanish). 20 July 2013. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  8. ^ "El asesino de los 4 niños del Caqueta, comenzó su carrera criminal en Ibagué" [The murderer of 4 children of in Caqueta, began his criminal career in Ibagué]. CambioIn (in Spanish). 16 February 2015. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  9. ^ Pujadas, Edda (5 May 2013). "La bruja asesina" [The murderous witch]. Diario La Voz (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  10. ^ Benecke, M.; Rodriquez, A.; Zabeck, M. & Mätzler, A. (September 2005). "Two Homosexual Pedophile Sadistic Serial Killers: Jürgen Bartsch (Germany, 1946–1976) and Luis Alfredo Garavito Cubillos (Colombia, 1957)" (PDF). Minerva Medicolegale. 125 (3). Turin: Edizioni Minerva Medica S.p.A.: 153–169. ISSN 0026-4849. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
  11. ^ "The gang of 'Black Widows' was captured in Antioquia" (in Spanish). Caracol Radio. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  12. ^ "Who is Pedro Lopez?". Matthew White. 20 February 2005. Archived from the original on 21 October 2007. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
  13. ^ "Capturado Homicida de Niñas de Suba" [Murderer of Suba girls captured]. El Tiempo (in Spanish). 1 February 2002. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  14. ^ "Los macabros detalles del asesino serial colombiano que le rendía tributo al diablo" [The macabre details of the Colombian serial killer who paid tribute to the devil]. Infobae (in Spanish). 14 February 2019. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
  15. ^ "Condenan a 42 años de prisión al llamado "asesino en serie" de Guarne" [The "serial killer" of Guarne sentenced to 42 years in prison]. RCN Radio (in Spanish). 20 January 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  16. ^ Melchor, the so-called 'Second Garavito' Santa Marta al Día. Accessed 30 May 2020. (in Spanish)
  17. ^ "Sicópata de 20 años tenía aterrorizados a los habitantes de Kennedy y Fontibón" [20-year-old psychopath terrified the inhabitants of Kennedy and Fontibón]. Caracol Radio (in Spanish). 28 February 1998. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  18. ^ "Yadira: la asesina en serie". Diario del Huila (in Spanish). 18 May 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  19. ^ "Paramilitares dieron muerte a reo que secuestró avión Colombiano" [Paramilitaries killed inmate who hijacked Colombian plane]. Caracol Radio (in Spanish). 21 February 2000. Archived from the original on 12 August 2021.
  20. ^ Rojas, Julián Espinos (16 April 2013). "La macabra ruta del 'Monstruo de Tenerife'" [The macabre journey of the 'Monster of Tenerife']. El Tiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  21. ^ "The gang of 'Black Widows' was captured in Antioquia" (in Spanish). Caracol Radio. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
  22. ^ "Capturada mujer acusada de asesinar a sus esposos para cobrar millonarios seguros de vida" [Captured woman accused of murdering her husbands to collect millions in life insurance]. RCN Radio (in Spanish). 30 January 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  23. ^ Óscar Javier Bueno (16 May 2023). "Fiscalía imputa por feminicidio a recluso que asesinó a su pareja en la cárcel de Cómbita" [Prosecutor's Office charges femicide to inmate who murdered his partner in Cómbita prison]. RCN Radio (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 14 November 2023.
  24. ^ "La historia del 'Monstruo de Monserrate', asesino en serie de mujeres" [The story of the 'Monster of Monserrate', serial killer of women]. RCN Radio (in Spanish). 2 December 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  25. ^ "Juan Carlos Villa, el asesino en serie de Risaralda responsable de al menos 11 homicidios". Caracol Radio. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  26. ^ "Cayó feminicida y violador en serie que aterrorizaba a Villavicencio" [Serial killer and rapist who terrorized Villavicencio captured]. Diario del Sur (in Spanish). 31 May 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  27. ^ Germán Peña Córdoba (24 September 2019). 'The Monster of the Mangones' in the 1960s Semanario digital Sevilla Valle del Cauca. Accessed 9 August 2020. (in Spanish)

Bibliography