Colombia Massacre in Cartagena Kills Four, 95th in 2026
SECURITY · COLOMBIA
Key Facts
- —The country Colombia, where Indepaz, a Bogotá peace research institute, counts as a massacre any killing of three or more defenceless people at once by the same attackers.
- —What happened Four young men were shot dead in a white car near Puerto Rey, in rural northern Cartagena, at about 11 p.m. on 1 October 2026 (Cartagena Metropolitan Police).
- —The numbers Indepaz registered it as Colombia’s 95th massacre of 2026 (EFE, 2 October). Its register shows 78 massacres in all of 2025 and 93 in 2023.
- —What it means for you The attack hit an unpaved rural road outside the city, not the tourist old town. Police link it, still unconfirmed, to organised crime in the area.
- —Still open The victims’ identities, the motive and the attackers. Police and prosecutors have formed a joint investigative team (Caracol Radio, 2 October).
A Colombia massacre on the rural edge of Cartagena left four young men dead late on Thursday, 1 October. Indepaz, a Bogotá research institute that tracks political violence, registered it as the country’s 95th massacre of 2026.
That count already exceeds the 78 massacres Indepaz recorded in the whole of 2025. The total for this year is preliminary and could still be revised as cases are reviewed.
What happened near Puerto Rey
Residents heard repeated gunfire on the unpaved road between Tierrabaja and Puerto Rey, two villages in the La Boquilla area. Police found three bodies inside a white car and a fourth a few metres away.
The Cartagena Metropolitan Police confirmed the discovery of four male bodies in a statement quoted by El Tiempo and El Universal. Inspection of the scene lasted until dawn on Friday, 2 October.
Early local reports put the victims at 20 to 22 years old, from La Boquilla. Caracol Radio, citing the police, later gave their ages as 18 to 29.
How this year compares
Indepaz keeps a public register of massacres with date, place and number of victims. Its list stood at 89 cases, with 336 victims, at its 11 September update.
Six more cases followed in three weeks, ending with the latest Colombia massacre in Cartagena, according to the count EFE reported on 2 October. The register shows 93 massacres in 2023 and 76 in 2024.
The rise sits alongside other violence data. Indepaz has also counted 117 social leaders killed this year, as reported in Colombia Social Leader Killings Reach 117 in 2026.
Who the police are looking at
According to Caracol Radio, police records show all four men had prior judicial records or links to investigations. One had been arrested in April on extortion and criminal conspiracy charges.
Police and the Fiscalía, Colombia’s prosecution service, formed a joint team to find the motive and the gunmen. For this Colombia massacre, organised crime is one line of inquiry, but officers stressed it is not yet verified.
Indepaz says the Clan del Golfo, the country’s largest criminal group, operates in the area, EFE reported. It links Cartagena’s violence to disputes over the port, the islands and the beaches.
The Defensoría del Pueblo, the state human rights ombudsman, has included Cartagena in earlier early-warning reports, Infobae noted. Those reports describe criminal groups splintering and fighting for territory.
What Is Not Yet Known
The victims have not been formally identified, and no one has been arrested. Police have not confirmed who carried out the attack or why.
It is also not clear whether official bodies will record the case as a Colombia massacre in their own data. The 95 figure is Indepaz’s own preliminary count, not a government statistic.
Sources: EFE via Swissinfo, 2 Oct 2026 · Indepaz massacre register · Caracol Radio, 2 Oct 2026 · El Tiempo, 2 Oct 2026 · El Universal (Cartagena), 2 Oct 2026 · Infobae, 2 Oct 2026
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief