Two Colombian nationals will serve lengthy prison sentences for conspiring to kill U.S. soldiers by detonating a car bomb outside a military base near Colombia's border with Venezuela, the Justice Department announced Thursday.
Colombian nationals Andrés Fernando Medina Rodríguez, 40, and Ciro Alfonso Gutierrez Ballesteros, 31, were sentenced to 35 and 30 years in prison, respectively, for their roles in the 2021 attempted attack.
According to court documents, Rodriguez, Ballesteros and members of the 33rd Front, a militant wing of Las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias (FARC), specifically targeted U.S. troops stationed at Colombia's 30th Army Brigade base in Cúcuta, Colombia.
Officials said one co-conspirator, Rodriguez, used his medically discharged status as a Colombian military officer to gain access to the base and conduct photo and video surveillance of areas primarily occupied by U.S. troops.
Car bomb explodes at Colombian military base, injuring at least 36
Soldiers listen to the news on their cellphones near a military base where a car bomb exploded in Cucuta, Colombia, on June 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Ferry Ospina)
About 10 days before the attack, Rodriguez and Ballesteros gave a white SUV to co-conspirators from the 33rd Front, who planted an improvised explosive device in it, officials said.
Authorities said that on June 15, 2021, Rodriguez drove the bomb-laden SUV to the 30th Army Brigade base, eventually parking it in front of where U.S. and Colombian military personnel were working.
Ballesteros escorted Rodriguez on a motorcycle and once inside, Rodriguez activated the bomb's timer, then left the scene and fled with Ballesteros.
Authorities have arrested three Colombian nationals for allegedly being involved in a tourist robbery ring in Southern California.
According to court documents, Rodriguez, Ballesteros and other members of the 33rd Front targeted U.S. troops stationed at Colombia's 30th Army Brigade base in Cucuta, Colombia. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
“Our most urgent mission and top priority is to hold accountable those who target the American people, as well as the brave men and women who serve in uniform across the country and around the world,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzie LaPointe for the Southern District of Florida.
“As the prison sentences handed down today to defendants Medina Rodriguez and Gutierrez Ballesteros demonstrate, individuals who threaten the safety and security of the United States and its people will face the full force of our criminal justice system.”
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The explosion injured three U.S. Army soldiers and 44 Colombian soldiers.
“Crime doesn't stop at the border, and neither does the FBI's commitment to investigating criminal activity against our military overseas,” Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI's Miami Field Office said in a statement.
“We work closely with international partners and security agencies around the world to conduct complex investigations and obtain evidence from overseas for criminal prosecution in the United States.”
The Army did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
