Jhon Frank Pinchao
John Frank Pinchao Blanco (born in 1970) is a Colombian policeman with the rank of sub-intendant who was kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group[1] after Farc's attack on the town of Mitú, Vaupés Department on November 1, 1998.[2][3][4]
Hostage
The attack on Mitu lasted 12 hours until the policemen ran out of ammunition, then the FARC took over the town for 3 days. Pinchao was among the aproximately 60 policemen taken as hostages. During the FARC-Government peace process (1999-2002) the Colombian government broke out a deal with the FARC and almost all policemen held as hostages were freed with the exception of six, among them was Pinchao. The last time Pinchao was seen alife was in July, 2003 when the FARC allowed a journalist named Jorge Enrique Botero to interview them.[5][6]
According to the Colombian Army the guerrilla commander in charge of the hostages was Gerardo Aguilar Ramírez aka "Cesar" Commander of the Southern Bloc's 1st Front and member of the Central Command of the FARC.[7]
Freedom
In a televised interview with Caracol TV, Pinchao partially narrated his quest to freedom. He mentioned that while in his almost 9 years of captivity he had seen political figure Ingrid Betancourt and Clara Rojas also held in captivity by the FARC.[8] He had also seen the three American contractors Keith Stansell, Tom Howes and Marc Gonzalves also kidnapped by the FARC.[9] The guerrilla used metal chains chained to their necks to one another in groups of two.[10] He had found a way to liberate himself from the chain and for a year Pinchao planned his escape. He escaped on April 28, 2007 and walked through virgin jungle for 12 days until an indigenous peoples who took him 3 days later to a group of Police's Jungle Commandos that were destroying narcotics cultivations and processing labs in the jungles of Vaupés by the Papuri River in the municipality of Pacoa. Pinchao was highly dehydrated and showed signs of malnourishment.
On May 15, 2007 Pinchao was then transferred to a Police base in San José del Guaviare and then to Bogota. He was taken for check ups to the National Police Central Hospital were he finally was reunited with his family.
Family
Pinchao is son of Luis Evelio Pinchao and Rosa Blanco mother of two siblings. He has a sister named Jenny Pinchao Blanco. He was in a relationship with Margot Zambrano at the moment of his kidnapping. He has one daughter that was born while he was in captivity.
References
- ^ EL TIEMPO.com
- ^ EL MUNDO.es
- ^ CityTV; Video reposrt of FARC's attack
- ^ Revista Semana; El subintendente John Pinchao se les fugó a las Farc tras nueve años de secuestro
- ^ EL TIEMPO.com
- ^ Revista Semana; El subintendente John Pinchao se les fugó a las Farc tras nueve años de secuestro
- ^ EL TIEMPO.com
- ^ Caracol Radio; Ingrid Betancourt está viva, asevera el policía que se le escapó a las Farc
- ^ US Embassy in Bogota
- ^ townhall.com; Colombia Hostage Was With 3 Americans
See also
- Fernando Araujo also kidnapped by FARC.