The discovery of new evidence linked to a deceased witness in the case of Marcelo Pecci, a prominent Paraguayan anti-mafia prosecutor, has shed light on the transnational scope of those behind the assassination.
On January 15, Daniel Gutiérrez, director of Colombia’s Penitentiary and Prison Institute (Instituto Nacional Penitenciario y Carcelario – INPEC), revealed that at least five prison officials are under investigation for irregularities related to the death of Francisco Luis Correa Galeano, the main witness in the murder of Pecci, killed as he celebrated his honeymoon at a Colombian beach resort.
SEE ALSO: No Smoke Without Fire: Inside the Investigation into Paraguay’s Horacio Cartes
Correa Galeano, a former soldier and ex-member of the “Paisas,” a Colombian criminal gang with paramilitary origins, was found dead on January 3 following an alleged altercation at Bogotá’s La Picota prison. At the time, he was negotiating with Colombian authorities to reduce his sentence in exchange for critical information that could help identify the masterminds behind the crime.
According to Colombian prosecutors, Correa Galeano was instrumental in the logistical coordination of Pecci’s murder, including providing weapons to the perpetrators.
Days after his death, the newspaper El Colombiano published details from a notebook allegedly belonging to Correa Galeano. Judicial sources claim that the notebook — currently undergoing authentication — contains names of individuals under investigation or accused of drug trafficking and money laundering in Paraguay.
Among those mentioned are “Tío Tío,” believed to refer to “Tío Rico,” the alias of Miguel Ángel Insfrán Galeano; and “Señor Marset,” likely referring to Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset. Both are accused of leading an international cocaine trafficking network in Paraguay and laundering illicit profits through local businesses. Both were identified as key suspects in Operation A Ultranza PY, a massive investigation into drug trafficking and money laundering that Pecci was working on at the time of his assassination.
Insfrán was extradited from Brazil in 2023, while Marset remains at large.
Before his death, Correa Galeano accused former Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes and Insfrán of masterminding Pecci’s murder, according to his testimony during an interrogation with the Colombian Prosecutor’s Office.
Francisco (Correa) Galeano is one of the few who has named, if not the only one, Horacio Cartes, who also [along with Insfrán and Marset] is often indicated as being the tip of the pyramid of this whole organization or at least having great ties,” Nicolás Centurión, an analyst on organized crime issues for the Latin American Center for Strategic Analysis (Centro Latinoamericano de Análisis y Estrategia – CLAE) and an expert on the Marset case, told InSight Crime.
El Colombiano did not report any mention of Cartes in the notebook. The notebook does, however, name prominent Colombian criminal organizations such as the Oficina de Envigado and the Paisas, both known for their extensive criminal operations and for providing contract killing services to local and international groups, El Colombiano reported.
InSight Crime Analysis
The revelations following the suspicious death of the key witness in the Paraguayan prosecutor’s case exposes the deepening transnational ties between criminal networks across South America.
Criminal collaboration between Paraguay and Colombia is not new. In the 2000s, the now-demobilized Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – FARC) reportedly trained the Paraguayan People’s Party (Ejército del Pueblo Paraguayo – EPP) in kidnapping tactics and explosives use, according to official reports.
SEE ALSO: Systemic Colombia Prison Corruption Reaches Top Officials
But the murders of both Pecci and Correa Galeano suggest the Colombian-Paraguayan connection may have evolved significantly. Transnational criminal networks now appear increasingly capable of crossing borders with ease to eliminate threats to their illicit operations.
What’s more, echoing the tactics of Italian mafias, which secure dominance by silencing witnesses and judges, the audacity of these killings — one at a private Caribbean beach hotel and another within a high-security prison — reveals a dangerous escalation in South American organized crime’s capacity to operate with increasing precision and impunity.
SEE ALSO: Paraguay Grapples with Criminal Sophistication After Prosecutor’s Slaying
Samuel Zuleta Márquez, who confessed to killing Correa Galeano, claimed the murder stemmed from a prison brawl unrelated to Pecci’s case. However, Correa Galeano’s pivotal role in the investigation and allegations of prison guard involvement suggest a more deliberate plot.
“We had warned the authorities about the danger this person faced, but no precautions were taken. On the contrary, instead of remaining in the prosecutor’s bunker, he was moved to a common prison where he was murdered,” Francisco Bernate, the Pecci family’s lawyer in Colombia, told El Tiempo after Correa Galeano’s death.
Corruption within Colombia’s prison system may have facilitated Correa Galeano’s murder. In December 2024, authorities dismantled a corruption network at La Picota prison — where Correa Galeano was killed — arresting 15 individuals, including seven INPEC officials and eight relatives of inmates. This network had been smuggling contraband and providing illicit benefits in exchange for payments.
While no arrests have been made in Paraguay for Pecci’s murder, the masterminds are believed to originate from there.
“Everything ultimately leads back to Paraguay,” Centurión stated.
Featured Image: Authorities escort Francisco Luis Correa Galeano, a key witness in the assassination of Paraguayan Prosecutor Marcelo Pecci, to Bogotá’s La Picota prison. Credit: Carlos Ortega EFE