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Reja de una cárcel de máxima seguridad con torre de vigilancia y alambre de púas al amanecer
Imagen alusiva a un establecimiento penitenciario de máxima seguridad con custodia reforzada. · Imagen generada por EPM

Miguel Quintero to be held at El Barne under reinforced custody

Resolution 008962 of the prison institute, issued on October 30, 2026, ordered that Miguel Andrés Quintero Calle remain at the El Barne prison in Cómbita…

--- The context --- Miguel Andrés Quintero Calle, brother of former Medellín mayor Daniel Quintero, is being investigated over alleged irregular contracting between the Metropolitan Area of the Aburrá Valley and the Itagüí firefighters. A circuit criminal judge revoked his initial house arrest. --- The facts --- Resolution 008962 of the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute, issued on the afternoon of Friday, October 30, 2026, ordered that he remain held at the El Barne High and Medium Security Prison and Penitentiary, in Cómbita, Boyacá. The director general of the institute, Colonel Daniel Fernando Gutiérrez Rojas, signed the decision. The transfer will be made from the Bello prison complex to El Barne, with reinforced custody. The defendant remains in Rionegro awaiting the move, which will be carried out with National Police support. He was captured on October 3, 2026, and faces charges of alleged improper execution of insurance contracts, aggravated embezzlement by appropriation and circumstances of punitive aggravation. The case is handled by the 27th Municipal Criminal Court of Medellín. --- The positions --- The resolution orders the leadership of the Bello facility to coordinate with the Northwest Regional Directorate, protect the integrity of the defendant and prevent escapes, rescues or attacks during the journey. It must also inform the judicial authority in the case and report compliance to the Penitentiary Affairs Group. The Prosecution maintains that the case covers six contracts between the metropolitan entity and the Itagüí firefighters for 17,656 million pesos, with irregular payments of 2,481 million. Under that hypothesis, Quintero allegedly received 1,653.3 million and Ortega allegedly obtained 133 million pesos. Álvaro Villada and Vanesa Álvarez, former officials of the entity, were also charged. Daniel Quintero supported his brother on social media and questioned the procedure, arguing indirectly that evidence and testimony had been manipulated. Mayor Federico Gutiérrez, by contrast, welcomed the revocation of the home measure and expressed expectations of judicial decisions concerning the former mayor. --- What remains unknown --- The order does not amount to a conviction, and the process remains under investigation and judicial debate, under Law 906 of 2004. The transfer to Cómbita still has to be carried out and the formal compliance report ordered in the resolution completed. --- Unanswered questions --- When will the transfer from Rionegro to El Barne take place? What conditions will the reinforced custody have during the journey? How will the debate over the six contracts under investigation move forward? What will the 27th Municipal Criminal Court of Medellín decide at the next hearings? --- EPM analysis --- The shift from house arrest to confinement in a high security prison raises state control without settling the substance of the case. The resolution combines transfer security with protection of his integrity. 📌 EPM Take: In EPM's view, confinement at El Barne should be read as a custody decision within a process that is still under investigation, not as an anticipation of guilt. The transfer ordered by Resolution 008962 focuses attention on the security of the operation and on the traceability of every action. At the same time, the figures put forward by the Prosecution and the charges against several former officials require the file to advance with verifiable evidence, full guarantees for the parties and reasoned judicial decisions that citizens can examine.
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