Jorge Enrique Rodríguez
Encyclopedia
Jorge Enrique Rodríguez Mendieta known by his nom de guerre Iván Vargas (born c. 1963) is a Colombia
n guerrilla leader member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
(FARC-EP), former commander of the 24th Front
of the Middle Magdalena Bloc of the FARC-EP. Vargas was arrested in late 2004 in the city of Bucaramanga
by Colombian authorities and extradited to the United States on November 3, 2007 on charges of narcotrafficking.
reported that Vargas was a guerrilla instructor in the Escuala Nacional de Cuadros de las FARC (a guerrilla training school of the FARC) in Casa Verde. In 1991 Vargas was made guerrilla commander of the 22nd Front of the FARC-EP, part of the Eastern Bloc of that organization. He was also a member of the Estado Mayor, the FARC’s operational leadership council.
to receive training in guerrilla tactics and ordnance and explosives training. Upon his return he was made commander of the 24th Front of the FARC-EP and commander of the Middle Magdalena region, guerrilla unit that operates in the southern region of Bolívar Department
. According to the Colombian Army, Vargas had also received training in the former Soviet Union
.
by the Government of Colombia
charged with conspiracy to export illegal drugs from Colombia to the United States. In Colombia, the government charged him with rebellion, terrorism, conspiracy to export illegal drugs
According to the United States Attorney General's Office Rodriguez Mendieta allegedly directed the purchase of hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine paste and transmitted billions of Colombian pesos in cocaine proceeds to other FARC officials. Rodriguez Mendieta is also alleged to have ordered the murder of at least eight farmers, including several whom he personally dismembered alive, and to have plotted to retaliate against United States law enforcement officers who were conducting the narcotics-trafficking investigation
Jorge Enrique Rodriguez Mendieta (a.k.a Ivan Vargas) was arrested by Colombian authorities in late 2004 and extradited to the U.S. in November 2007. On December 16, 2009, he pleaded guilty in a Washington, D.C. federal court to conspiring to import large quantities of cocaine into the U.S.
When submitting his guilty plea, Mendieta admitted that he had directed other FARC members to purchase hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine paste, some of which was imported to the U.S. The U.S. government has also alleged that Mendieta plotted to retaliate against American law enforcement officers conducting the narcotics-trafficking investigation that ultimately led to the charges filed against him.
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...
n guerrilla leader member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict, currently involved in drug dealing and crimes against the civilians..FARC-EP is a peasant army which...
(FARC-EP), former commander of the 24th Front
Middle Magdalena Bloc of the FARC-EP
The Middle Magdalena Bloc of the FARC-EP is a FARC-EP bloc, notable for its involvement in the conflict with the AUC until the latter's demobilization in 2004. Since then, it has become one of the Colombian army's biggest worries, as citizens of these areas are claiming that the FARC are once...
of the Middle Magdalena Bloc of the FARC-EP. Vargas was arrested in late 2004 in the city of Bucaramanga
Bucaramanga
Bucaramanga is a Colombian city, and capital city of the department of Santander, Colombia. Bucaramanga has the fifth largest city economy and sixth largest population in Colombia, with 1,212,656 people in its metropolitan area...
by Colombian authorities and extradited to the United States on November 3, 2007 on charges of narcotrafficking.
Early years
Vargas began his activities with the FARC in 1987 as an aide of the FARC's Secretariat and in 1989 military intelligence of the Colombian ArmyColombian Army
The National Army of Colombia is the land military force of the government of Colombia and the largest service of the Colombian Armed Forces...
reported that Vargas was a guerrilla instructor in the Escuala Nacional de Cuadros de las FARC (a guerrilla training school of the FARC) in Casa Verde. In 1991 Vargas was made guerrilla commander of the 22nd Front of the FARC-EP, part of the Eastern Bloc of that organization. He was also a member of the Estado Mayor, the FARC’s operational leadership council.
Vietnam training and commander
The following year, in 1992 Vargas was sent to VietnamVietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
to receive training in guerrilla tactics and ordnance and explosives training. Upon his return he was made commander of the 24th Front of the FARC-EP and commander of the Middle Magdalena region, guerrilla unit that operates in the southern region of Bolívar Department
Bolívar Department
Bolívar is a department of Colombia. It was named after one of the original nine states of the United States of Colombia. It is located to the north of the country, extending from the coast at Cartagena near the mouth of the Magdalena River, then south along the river to a border with Antioquia.Its...
. According to the Colombian Army, Vargas had also received training in the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Capture and extradition to the United States
Vargas was extradited to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
by the Government of Colombia
Government of Colombia
The government of Colombiais a republic with separation of powers into executive, judicial and legislative branches.Its legislature has a congress,its judiciary has a supreme court, andits executive branch has a president....
charged with conspiracy to export illegal drugs from Colombia to the United States. In Colombia, the government charged him with rebellion, terrorism, conspiracy to export illegal drugs
Illegal drug trade in Colombia
Illegal drug trade in Colombia refers to the practice of producing and distributing illegal drugs with psychoactive effects in Colombia. Colombia has had four major drug trafficking cartels which eventually created a new social class and influenced several aspects of Colombian culture...
According to the United States Attorney General's Office Rodriguez Mendieta allegedly directed the purchase of hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine paste and transmitted billions of Colombian pesos in cocaine proceeds to other FARC officials. Rodriguez Mendieta is also alleged to have ordered the murder of at least eight farmers, including several whom he personally dismembered alive, and to have plotted to retaliate against United States law enforcement officers who were conducting the narcotics-trafficking investigation
Jorge Enrique Rodriguez Mendieta (a.k.a Ivan Vargas) was arrested by Colombian authorities in late 2004 and extradited to the U.S. in November 2007. On December 16, 2009, he pleaded guilty in a Washington, D.C. federal court to conspiring to import large quantities of cocaine into the U.S.
When submitting his guilty plea, Mendieta admitted that he had directed other FARC members to purchase hundreds of thousands of kilograms of cocaine paste, some of which was imported to the U.S. The U.S. government has also alleged that Mendieta plotted to retaliate against American law enforcement officers conducting the narcotics-trafficking investigation that ultimately led to the charges filed against him.