Two men jailed for killing app-based driver in Bogotá, El Codito neighbourhood
A judge sent two men to prison for murdering Juan Pablo Vargas, a 26-year-old platform driver, in Usaquén. The Public Prosecutor's Office charged them with homicide, aggravated theft and firearms offences.
Two arrested for murder of app driver used as cover for the crime
A Bogotá judge ordered the preventive detention of two men accused of murdering Juan Pablo Vargas, a 26-year-old platform driver, according to noticiasrcn.com. The Public Prosecutor's Office charged them with the offences of homicide, aggravated theft and manufacturing, trafficking or carrying firearms; none of the charges were accepted.
The crime took place on the evening of Wednesday, 22 July. Vargas, originally from Boyacá, lived in Bogotá in search of a better future for himself and his six-year-old daughter.
The two men now arrested requested the service through the application as a cover for the crime. The journey was planned towards the north of the city, but during the trip the suspects drew their weapons, threatened the driver and forced him to change route towards the El Codito neighbourhood, in the Usaquén district. There they robbed him and shot him several times until he died.
Security cameras in the area recorded the moment when Vargas begged them not to harm him. After fleeing, the two men were intercepted during a chase; the vehicle overturned and both were arrested at the scene.
At a wake held in the Teusaquillo district, the victim's cousin, Alina Becerra, called for justice: "He did not deserve such a cruel death. He was a good person and got into trouble with no one. He was an excellent human being to have everything done to him that was done to him."
Figures from the Security Secretariat indicate that as of 2026, 545 murders have been recorded in Bogotá, with 54 per cent of them—294 cases—committed with firearms.
Source: Google News CO — Bogotá