Honduras shocked: five Dipampco agents found dismembered and burned in Omoa

Honduras was shaken again after new and chilling details were revealed about the murder of five agents of the Anti-Mara and Gang Police Directorate Against Organized Crime (Dipampco), whose bodies were found dismembered and partially burned in a mountainous area of Corinto, Omoa, department of Cortés.

The agents had disappeared during an anti-drug operation carried out in a border area with Guatemala, where alleged members of a criminal structure linked to drug trafficking had deprived them of their liberty before killing them with extreme violence.

The authorities confirmed that the bodies showed multiple gunshot wounds and signs of torture, in addition to having been dismembered and subsequently burned by their attackers.

Five Agents Killed Identified

The Secretariat of Security officially confirmed the identity of the police officers who died during the operation in Corinto, Omoa.

The victims were identified as:

• Lester Josué Amador Herrera, posthumous sub-commissioner
• Leonel Alejandro Valdés Núñez, police officer
• Dailin Francisco Elvir Quintanilla, police officer
• Nels Makley Eguigure Benavídez, police officer
• Emerson Josué Canales Fúnez, police officer

The agents presented bullet impacts, mutilations, and signs of extreme violence. The five agents belonged to the Dipampco and had left Tegucigalpa to participate in an operation against criminal structures dedicated to drug trafficking and distribution in the border area. The case has generated strong national shock due to the level of violence with which the uniformed officers were murdered.

Bodies were found on the mountain

According to preliminary reports, special rescue teams heavily armed entered a mountainous area of Omoa after receiving information about the possible whereabouts of the missing agents. Initially, the uniformed officers located the body of Sub-Commissioner Lester Josué Amador Herrera.

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Subsequently, they found the other four police officers scattered at different points on the mountain.

Authorities detailed that the agents had been captured by members of a criminal organization during the anti-drug operation and subsequently executed.

The preliminary report indicates that the bodies showed multiple gunshot wounds and signs of extreme violence. The investigations also revealed that those responsible dismembered the agents' bodies, beheaded them, and subsequently attempted to burn them to hinder their identification. The images and details of the crime generated outrage in different sectors of the country and reignited the debate about the advance of heavily armed criminal structures in Honduras. The authorities found the bodies of the police officers in a mountainous area bordering Guatemala. So far, the authorities have ruled out civilian casualties related to the operation. However, it is presumed that several members of the criminal structure managed to escape to Guatemala after the attack. For that reason, Honduras has already coordinated actions with Guatemalan authorities to try to locate the suspects who crossed the border.

Suspension of Dipampco Leadership

Following the massacre, the Secretariat of Security announced the immediate suspension of the director, deputy director, and head of operations of Dipampco.

According to the official statement, the measure responds to the "failure to observe institutional procedures" during the operation carried out in Corinto, Omoa. The authorities believe that operational failures occurred that ended up exposing the agents killed during the anti-drug operation. Meanwhile, more than 500 police officers and 200 military personnel remain deployed in the area, conducting search, tracking, and sector security operations. The Secretariat of Security suspended the leadership of Dipampco after the failed operation. The case occurs in the midst of one of the most violent days recently recorded in Honduras, also marked by the massacre of at least 20 people in Trujillo, Colón. The wave of violence has caused national and international concern over the deterioration of security in different regions of the country.