“I had faith that God would bring me home”: rancher Jesús Quintero

After spending eleven days in captivity, the rancher and farmer Jesús del Carmen Quintero Navarro, 70, was released this Monday morning, in the town of La Mata, municipality of Pelaya, south of Cesar.

According to the older adult’s testimony, after being released, he arrived at the house of relatives in La Mata, from where he notified relatives and authorities. “Thank God that I am now with my family, I always trusted in God, in prayers. They were difficult days, however, I feel in good health, God gave me a lot of strength, I felt his presence, I had faith that he would bring me home.”

‘Churo Ballena’, as they affectionately call him, assured that he never knew where they took him, even early yesterday morning they called him, they bandaged him and put him in a truck, while traveling a distance he was abandoned, he walked and when he identified that it was La Mata I look for help. “Thank you all for being attentive to my release, for the prayer chains, I am happy to be back with my family,” he said from his place of residence.

Regarding his treatment during his days in captivity, Quintero Navarro assured that the people who had him never told him anything, and he did not even know the armed group that kidnapped him. “I only heard planes, I didn’t see anything because they had me locked up.”

When asked about the payment of any reward by the family, he said that there were no agreements, they simply released him, an action that he presumes was the pressure that the public force has been exerting in the south of Cesar, given the wave of kidnappings and criminal acts.

As you may remember, Navarro Quintero was kidnapped on June 16 on the farm he owned, located in the village of Caño Sucio, jurisdiction of Pelaya, where he was loaded into his own truck, which was then left abandoned.

Eduardo Esquivel, Secretary of Government of Cesar, stated that in the next few hours a security council would be held to analyze strategies and strengthen the shock plan that is being implemented in the municipality of Pelaya, given the recent criminal acts.

He reiterated that the reward of up to 50 million pesos is maintained for the release of the merchant Maira Beltrán Quintero, 43 years old, who has remained in captivity since June 15. This female was kidnapped when she was carrying out sports activities with her husband and her friends on the road that connects the municipality of Pelaya with the township of Costilla.

Amalia Arroyo Arrieta, 56, who was kidnapped in the municipality of Tamalameque last March, and Sanín Mena, 87, who was taken away on May 29, also remain in captivity in Cesar. townships of Los Ángeles and Montecitos in the municipality of Río de Oro, Cesar.

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