Elda Neyis Mosquera
Encyclopedia
Elda Neyis Mosquera García (nom de guerre Karina aka Nelly Ávila Moreno) is the former commander
of the 47th Front
of FARC-EP, a communist rebel group in Colombia
. She surrendered to the Colombian Military
on May 18, 2008. She was subsequently tried in court and found guilty of massacres, kidnapping
, murder
, among others, and sentenced to 33 years in jail, but on March 6, 2009 it was announced that she was to be released from prison to serve as "promoter of peace," and to serve as an example to other rebels to entice them to surrender.
Moreno was a member of FARC for 24 years prior to her surrender. At a news conference in Medellín
, Moreno said she surrendered because of increasing Colombian army pressure, the deterioration of rebel forces and her fear she might be killed by her own troops for the $900,000 bounty on her head, in the wake of a previous FARC commander (Iván Ríos
) having been murdered by his own bodyguards.
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
of the 47th Front
Front
Front may refer to:common noun* Front , area where armies are engaged in conflict** Front , Front , types of military formations* Front , term used by Goffman* Front organization* Ice front of a glacier...
of FARC-EP, a communist rebel group in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. She surrendered to the Colombian Military
Military of Colombia
The Military Forces of Colombia are the armed forces of the Republic of Colombia.-Services:The Military of Colombia consists of:* National Army of Colombia * Colombian National Armada - Marines, Navy and Coast Guard attached* Colombian Air Force...
on May 18, 2008. She was subsequently tried in court and found guilty of massacres, kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
, murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, among others, and sentenced to 33 years in jail, but on March 6, 2009 it was announced that she was to be released from prison to serve as "promoter of peace," and to serve as an example to other rebels to entice them to surrender.
Moreno was a member of FARC for 24 years prior to her surrender. At a news conference in Medellín
Medellín
Medellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...
, Moreno said she surrendered because of increasing Colombian army pressure, the deterioration of rebel forces and her fear she might be killed by her own troops for the $900,000 bounty on her head, in the wake of a previous FARC commander (Iván Ríos
Iván Ríos
José Juvenal Velandia, aka Iván Ríos, aka Manuel Jesús Muñoz Ortiz, , born in San Francisco, Putumayo, Colombia, was the Head of the Central Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the youngest member of this guerrilla's Central High Command.-Death:Ríos was killed by his security...
) having been murdered by his own bodyguards.