Colombian police dismissed 1,751 officers for corruption between 2022 and 2026
The General Inspectorate of the National Police reported an average of one dismissal per day. Patrol officers account for nearly two-thirds of cases.
Nearly 1,800 Colombian uniformed personnel separated from service for corruption in four years
The Colombian National Police dismissed 1,751 uniformed officers for corruption between 1 January 2022 and 8 October 2026, equivalent to approximately one case per day, according to infobae.com reporting based on data provided by the institution's General Inspectorate in response to a freedom of information request from Caracol Radio.
Of the total dismissed, 1,186 were patrol officers, nearly two out of every three cases. The officer corps contributed 79 dismissals, among them one colonel, four lieutenant colonels, 18 majors, 18 captains, 22 lieutenants and 16 second lieutenants.
2025, the year with the most dismissals
The year with the highest number of decisions was 2025, with 477 cases recorded. The sharpest increase occurred between 2022 and 2023, when dismissals rose from 168 to 456. As of 8 October 2026, the accumulated figure for the current year stood at 329 uniformed personnel separated from the institution.
Bogotá leads by department
Cases investigated in Bogotá account for the largest number of dismissals, with 453 police officers removed. Antioquia ranks second with 240 cases, followed by Valle del Cauca with 172. Atlántico, Norte de Santander and Cundinamarca follow, though the report does not provide individual figures for those departments.
Bribery and theft, the most frequent offences
The most recurrent disciplinary cause was requesting or receiving money: 652 uniformed officers were dismissed for extortion, bribery or gifts, more than one-third of the total for the period. This was followed by theft and misappropriation of property, with 427 cases; drug trafficking and precursor chemicals, with 138; and criminal conspiracy, with 121. There were also 59 dismissals for allowing or facilitating detainee escapes, 58 for extortion and 24 for kidnapping.
More than 4,000 disciplinary proceedings opened
In addition to dismissals, the National Police opened 4,321 disciplinary proceedings for corruption during the same period. The year with the highest number of proceedings opened was 2024, with 1,088 files. As of the reported date, 1,243 proceedings remained open, 2,094 police officers had received sanctions and 3,834 files closed with an archival decision.
President announces undercover agents in public administration
The president of the Republic, Abelardo de la Espriella, announced on 4 October 2026 on his X account that undercover agents work within the public administration to investigate corrupt officials. The message did not include details about the identity of the agents or the scope of operations.
De la Espriella ordered that any evidence of crime, breach or patrimonial harm be immediately referred to the General Prosecutor's Office, the General Ombudsman's Office and the General Comptroller's Office. "There are no political tribunals here. There are complaints and justice," he affirmed.
The president also instructed the Secretary of Transparency, Cristina Lombana, to combat corruption and protect "the people's money", and indicated that investigators should monitor, when the law permits, contracts, advance payments, additions, assets, real beneficiaries and financial movements.
As leader of the Defenders of the Fatherland movement, De la Espriella stated that his government will not wait for theft to occur before acting. "I repeated it to mayors and governors this week: I will not permit a single peso to be stolen," he emphasised. He added that Colombians have the right to know what happened with contracts, accounts and resources during the previous government.
Source: Google News CO — Crime