New evidence links Colombia army chief to civilian slayings

New evidence has emerged linking the embattled head of Colombia's army to the alleged cover-up of civilian killings more than a decade ago.

The documents, provided to The Associated Press by a person familiar with an ongoing investigation into the extrajudicial killings, come as Gen. Nicacio Martnez Espinel faces mounting pressure to resign over orders he gave troops this year to step up attacks in what some fear could pave the way for a return of serious human rights violations.

Colombia's military has been blamed for as many as 5,000 extrajudicial killings at the height of the country's armed conflict in the mid-2000s as troops under pressure by top commanders inflated body counts, in some cases dressing up civilians as guerrillas in exchange for extra pay and other perks.

What became known as the "false positives" scandal has cast a dark shadow over the U.S.-backed military's record of battleground victories. Fifteen years later not a single top commander has been held accountable for the slayings.

Human Rights Watch in February harshly criticized President Ivan Duque's appointment of Martnez Espinel, noting that he was second-in-command of the 10th Brigade in northeast Colombia during years for which prosecutors have opened investigations into 23 illegal killings.

The rights group revealed that then Col. Martnez Espinel certified payments to an informant who led to "excellent results" in a purported combat operation in which an indigenous civilian and 13-year-old girl were killed.

A court later convicted two soldiers of abducting them from their home, murdering them and putting weapons on their bodies so they appeared to be rebels.

Martnez Espinel at the time of the report said he had "no idea" if he had made the payments. "God and my subalterns know how we've acted," he said.

But new documents from Colombia's prosecutor's office show that Martnez Espinel in 2005 signed off on at least seven other questionable payments. The documents were provided to the AP by someone on the condition of anonymity because they fear retaliation.

Some of the rewards, which never exceeded USD 500, went to supposed informants whose names and IDs didn't match.

In two cases, judicial investigators found the real beneficiary was soldier Oscar Alfonso, who would go on to be sentenced to 40 years for his role in a third, unrelated civilian killing. One hidden recipient was a former paramilitary commander sentenced to 15 years for extortion.

In another inconsistency, on two occasions Martnez Espinel vouched for information leading to fighting that the same documents show took place days later.

Such was the case for a payment made on May 17, 2005 to an unnamed informant and which bears Martnez Espinel's signature. The payment refers to combat with purported guerrillas on May 20 three days later in which an unidentified "no name" male was reported killed possessing a grenade and pistol.

"A decade ago, soldiers across Colombia lured civilians to remote locations under false pretenses such as with promises of work killed them, placed weapons on their lifeless bodies, and then reported them as enemy combatants killed in action," said Jos Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch.

"One can't help wonder if any of the cockades in their uniforms, or the promotions throughout 'successful' careers, corresponds to the murder of innocent civilians committed over a decade ago."