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Automóvil plateado con los cristales rotos y cinta policial en una calle costera de Samaná
Calle costera con un vehículo con los cristales rotos tras un atraco, imagen alusiva al caso de Samaná. · Imagen generada para EPM

Tolentino seeks Interpol arrest in Samaná robbery case

Ramón Tolentino asked Dominican authorities and Interpol to capture Luis Fernando Bedolla Rivera, identified for his alleged link to the Samaná robbery of…

--- The context --- Journalist Ramón Tolentino asked Dominican authorities and Interpol to capture Colombian citizen Luis Fernando Bedolla Rivera, identified for his alleged link to a robbery in Samaná. The victim was Samuel Bernardo Wilmore Phillips, husband of magistrate Nica Castillo, whose money for a family project was taken from his vehicle. --- The facts --- According to the chronology Tolentino presented on a radio program, on July 1 at 2:15 p.m., Wilmore Phillips withdrew RD$1,800,000 at a branch in Santa Bárbara, Samaná. Recordings identified two young men inside the bank watching the transaction, described as alleged lookouts who alerted the other participants. When the victim left in his pickup truck, he was followed by a white Kia car, plate A969839, rented according to the investigation in Bedolla Rivera's name. In front of the Samaná prosecutor's office, one suspect broke the car window, took the envelope with the money and fled. In Boca Chica those involved switched to a second white car, plate AA83444, registered to Paola Michelle Fabián Mora, against whom an arrest order was presented. --- The positions --- Tolentino explained that he presented the arrest order and that the Public Prosecutor's Office asked Interpol to capture the identified man if he left the country for Colombia or any other destination. He also suggested someone may have leaked the withdrawal, because the perpetrators did not know the victim. On Fabián Mora, he clarified in reported speech that he relies on the existing arrest order and asked her to surrender, while also asking former migration director Enrique García to help facilitate that surrender. --- What remains unknown --- The source does not confirm whether Bedolla Rivera left the country, whether the money was recovered or how many people took part in total. --- Unanswered questions --- Who allegedly leaked the information about the RD$1,800,000 withdrawal on July 1? Where is the identified Colombian citizen now, and will he answer the call to surrender? Why did the bank take more than a month to deliver the videos requested by the Public Prosecutor's Office? --- EPM analysis --- The case combines surveillance inside a bank branch, a pursuit involving two vehicles and a delayed handover of video evidence. The chronology, with a specific time, plates and locations, offers a verifiable route, but every link remains alleged until a court assesses it. 📌 EPM Take: In EPM's view, this case requires a swift but rights-respecting response that protects the victim and the community without undermining the presumption of innocence of those identified. The Interpol request, the arrest order and the call to surrender must lead to verifiable actions, with clear timelines and accountability for the bank's delay. Only with complete evidence, effective international cooperation and a transparent process can authorities clarify the alleged leak, locate those involved and restore confidence in the institutions responsible for investigating.
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