Family of Rosa Elvira Cely awaits reparations 13 years after judicial order
Despite a confirmed judicial conviction and a settlement agreement signed in 2023, Bogotá's district has not paid out reparations to Cely's family members.
Payment pending 13 years after Rosa Elvira Cely's femicide in Bogotá
Bogotá's district agreed in December 2023 to provide reparations to the family of Rosa Elvira Cely and set a maximum deadline of 70 working days to complete the payments. According to elcolombiano.com, that deadline expired and 2024, 2025, and nine months of 2026 have passed without a single payment being made.
Rosa Elvira Cely was brutally attacked in May 2012 in Bogotá's National Park. She survived the assault but died after being transferred to Hospital Santa Clara, where, according to what judges established in the administrative proceedings, she remained for hours on an ambulance stretcher in a corridor without receiving the specialised medical care her condition required. She was subsequently placed in a wheelchair. She eventually died.
Javier Velasco Valenzuela was sentenced to 48 years in prison and ordered to pay a fine for aggravated homicide, torture, and aggravated sexual assault. The case led to the enactment of Law 1761 of 2015, known as the Rosa Elvira Cely Law, which established femicide as an autonomous crime in Colombia.
Judicial conviction and unfulfilled settlement agreement
The family filed a lawsuit against the State, the Public Prosecutor's Office, and Hospital Santa Clara over the circumstances surrounding both the assault and the subsequent medical care. Administrative Court 37 of Bogotá's Judicial Circuit issued a ruling in 2023 declaring the sued entities responsible and ordering compensation for damages. The decision was confirmed by Bogotá's Administrative Court in 2025.
In the case of the Integrated Healthcare Services Network Centre-East of Bogotá—the entity responsible for Hospital Santa Clara—the judges ordered comprehensive reparation measures and financial recognition in favour of the family members. The amount was not made public.
The courts also examined the actions of the Public Prosecutor's Office and concluded that there was a failure in the duty to investigate, related to the failure to capture Velasco Valenzuela promptly. The case file also indicates that the condemned man had been reported years earlier for harassment and sexual abuse against another woman, and that there were allegations linked to his own daughters.
Following the initial ruling, Bogotá's Mayor's Office—under the administration of Claudia López—advanced a settlement agreement. The pact was recorded in the District's Resolution 673, signed on 27 December 2023, and established the reparation mechanisms and amounts corresponding to the family members for items such as moral damages, health impacts, and material losses. Administrative Court 37 subsequently approved the settlement and set a deadline of 70 working days for the payments.
Liquidation below agreed amount and dispute over late-payment interest
In June 2026, the Integrated Healthcare Services Network and the Cely family resumed discussions to attempt to finalise payment. However, according to information known to elcolombiano.com, the entity initially presented a liquidation approximately 37 per cent below the amount claimed based on the judicial decisions. Since then, further discussions have taken place, but the parties have been unable to reach agreement on the late-payment interest resulting from the failure to comply.
"This is not fair to Rosa Elvira Cely's family, nor is it the message that should be transmitted to the women of the city," denounced DHColombia, an organisation supporting the family's legal defence.
The situation also has an element that aggravates the dispute: whilst the initial agreement spoke of concrete reparation, the Administrative Court ultimately confirmed the conviction at the second instance, adding an additional layer of legal obligations on the sued entities.
Rosa Elvira Cely was a single mother and became one of the symbols of the struggle against gender violence in Colombia. More than a decade after her death, her family continues to await the fulfilment of reparations ordered by the courts and formally agreed with the District.
Source: Google News CO — Crime