A Colombian man has been extradited to the United States from Chile for allegedly kidnapping and assaulting two U.S. Army soldiers in Bogota.
Pedro Jose Silva Ochoa, also known as Tata, 47, of Bogota, is accused of working with co-conspirators to target, incapacitate, and kidnap the two soldiers to rob them.
According to the Justice Department, on March 5, 2020, the two victims were in the entertainment district in Bogota watching a soccer game and went to a pub for drinks afterward.
One of Silva Ochoa's co-conspirators allegedly incapacitated the victims by putting benzodiazepines in their drinks.
"Silva Ochoa’s co-conspirators then escorted the victims into a waiting car driven by Silva Ochoa, kidnapped them, and took their wallets, debit cards, credit cards, and cell phones," the Justice Department said in a press release. "Silva Ochoa and his co-conspirators used one victim’s credit card and the other victim’s debit card to make purchases and withdraw money. The two victims lost consciousness until the following day, by which point they had been separated."
Silva Ochoa has been charged with kidnapping an internationally protected person, conspiracy to kidnap an internationally protected person, assaulting an internationally protected person, and conspiracy to assault an internationally protected person.
If convicted of all charges, Silva Ochoa faces up to life in prison. His first court appearance was in Miami on April 18 before Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
The press release added, "The FBI is investigating the case and escorted Silva Ochoa from Chile to the United States. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI Miami Field Office, the Office of the Legal Attaché Santiago, and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Judicial Attaché’s Office in Bogota provided significant assistance in securing the arrest and extradition of Silva Ochoa. The United States also thanks Colombian and Chilean law enforcement authorities for their valuable assistance."
One of the alleged co-conspirators, Jeffersson Arango Castellanos, was extradited from Colombia in April 2023 and has pleaded guilty to all charges.
