Following an unexpected meeting between US President Donald Trump and Colombian President Gustavo Petro, authorities from both countries have opened a coordinated manhunt targeting three high-profile Colombian criminal leaders. The men head organisations implicated in decades-long violence that continues to destabilise parts of Colombia through drug trafficking, illegal mining, kidnappings and violent attacks.
'Chiquito Malo'
Jobanis de Jesus Avila, known as 'Chiquito Malo' (literally 'Little Bad Boy'), assumed leadership of the Gulf Clan in October 2021 after the arrest of Dairo Antonio Usuga, alias 'Otoniel.' Otoniel's capture and subsequent extradition to the United States — where he was sentenced to 45 years in prison — marked one of the most significant blows to Colombian organised crime since the 1990s.
The Gulf Clan grew from paramilitary origins in the 1990s and today is involved in cocaine trafficking, illegal gold mining and people-smuggling. Analysts describe Avila as a 'technocrat' who runs operations with a businesslike approach. Since his rise, alleged rivals have died under suspicious circumstances, and a known photo shows Avila with a shaved head wearing a suit. His placement on the joint US–Colombia wanted list prompted the Gulf Clan to suspend peace talks that began in Qatar months earlier.
Ivan Mordisco
Nestor Gregorio Vera, alias 'Ivan Mordisco,' was a mid-ranking FARC commander when the guerrilla group signed a peace deal in 2016. He rejected the pact and re-emerged as a prominent criminal leader, heading dissident fighters known as the Central General Staff (EMC).
Mordisco is accused of leading cocaine trafficking networks and illegal clearing of jungle for cattle ranching. Bogotá has named him Colombia's most wanted individual and is offering roughly $1 million for information leading to his capture. His only confirmed public appearance in April 2023 — arriving in a bulletproof SUV at a remote jungle site to announce failed peace talks — underscored his continued influence and willingness to appear publicly when politically expedient.
Pablito
Gustavo Anibal Giraldo, known as 'Pablito' ('Little Pablo'), is regarded as a hardliner within the National Liberation Army (ELN). He led the Domingo Lain front, one of the ELN's wealthiest and most violent factions operating along the Colombia–Venezuela border, and is currently ranked among the ELN's senior commanders.
Insight Crime and other analysts say Giraldo wields broad authority over ELN troops across Colombia and Venezuela. Although he opposed negotiations, he travelled to Havana in 2018 to meet government negotiators; those talks collapsed after a 2019 car bomb at a Bogotá military school that killed 23 people, an attack for which authorities accused him of issuing orders.
Context: The joint US–Colombia operation signals deeper bilateral cooperation against transnational organised crime. The three targets lead groups involved in narcotics, illicit mining and violent tactics — contributing to persistent instability in affected regions.
