Manuel Octavio Bermudez

Case record: Manuel Octavio Bermudez

Manuel Octavio Bermudez was known as “El Monstruo de los Cañaduzales.”

Background

For four years, he was said to have left a trail of killings in the sugarcane fields of the Valle. His victims were described as children from humble backgrounds aged between 9 and 14 years.

He was described as a “confeso violador y asesino de por lo menos 34 niños,” and he confessed to responsibility for multiple child deaths and sexual assaults. Authorities said the acts were committed in Palmira, Pradera, Florida and Yotoco, and that investigators also extended inquiries to the Eje Cafetero.

In one narrative, he was described as “separado y padre de por lo menos dos hijos” and also as “natural de Trujillo.” He was said to have rented a room in an inquilinato near the Galería Central in 2002, located on “la Carrera 25 con Calle 25.”

The offence

He was described as violating and killing children, including cases in which investigators said they found signs of being violated, bound, gagged or hand-tied, and strangled.

He was described as seducing children with money, taking them to isolated areas among sugarcane estates outside urban centers, and then abusing them and strangling them with a cord/cordel. He was also described as using a local anesthetic “Ridocaína al 2%” and that “una ampolleta de Ridocadina al 2%” was found in his wallet; investigators also found syringes with anesthetic traces.

He was described as keeping items from victims, including “una prenda de cada una de sus víctimas y los recortes de prensa donde se publicaron sus matanzas.”

A separate narrative stated that he confessed that he had to kill victims “para que no me reconocieran después” and that he was “arrepentido.”

Investigation

After his capture, investigators continued working to establish links between confessed cases and victims reported as missing or unidentifiable.

Authorities said the CTI and Fiscalía worked with scientific and technical measures including DNA testing, fingerprinting, blood samples, and psychiatric/psychological evaluation.

Investigators stated that the confession initially left “un enorme hueco” and that there was a “espacio criminal sin llenar” before the expanded statements matched additional cases.

Arrest and custody

He was captured on 18 July 2003 in Pradera, Valle. He was said to have been identified after the disappearance of a child named Luis Carlos Galviz.

After his capture, a search in a rented room in the neighborhood of “El Cairo” led to findings including newspaper clippings about other children’s deaths, syringes, substances under investigation, and the wristwatch said to belong to Luis Carlos Galvis.

He was taken from Pradera to Cali for tests over a weekend.

Confessions and statements

He confessed responsibility for multiple killings and sexual assaults. In one account, he initially gave differing versions: he first said he was responsible for all deaths of minors in Palmira, Pradera, Florida and Yotoco, then said responsibility for only seven cases, and later returned to the initial broader version.

One narrative said he stated:

“Sí, yo violé y maté a los niños”

Another narrative recorded that he said:

“Tenía que matarlos obligado, para que no me reconocieran después, pero estoy arrepentido”

During transport for interrogation, he was recorded as saying:

“El niño que buscan está muerto”

Investigators described that he later stated that he had killed sixteen children between April 1999 and July 2003, and another passage described that his number of crimes reached 16 in a “segunda confesión.”

There were also statements that his confession covered seven children initially found, and then expanded to include remaining cases linked by investigative comparison.

Timeline

• 6 April 1999 — In Palmira, a child’s body was found; Luz Dary Useche identified the child as her missing son, Andrés Felipe Serna, but the child remained “NN” in the first listing.
• 17 September 1999 — In Palmira, another child’s body was found; it remained “NN.”
• 5 May 2000 — In the hacienda Cascajal in Palmira, another child’s bones were found; they remained unidentifiable.
• 30 December 2001 — In Palmira, Javier Sánchez Fernández (11) was found; he had disappeared two days earlier.
• 14 February 2002 — In Palmira, another dead child was found; it was not identified.
• 1 April 2002 — In Palmira, José Évert Sinisterra (13) was found.
• 9 April 2002 — In the hacienda Cascajal, the remains of another child were found; they were listed as “NN.”
• 27 July 2002 — In Tuluá, Edwin Andrés Pérez (12) was found.
• 3 December 2002 — In the corregimiento Aguaclara de Palmira, the remains of Miguel Ángel Arce (11) were found; he had disappeared one month earlier.
• 13 December 2002 — In Palmira, Nahún Candelo was found.
• 15 January 2003 — In Palmira, Carlos Alfonso Fajardo Morcillo was found.
• 25 January 2003 — In the hacienda Cascajal, Cristian Fabián Torres (9) was found; he had disappeared on 10 December 2002.
• 19 April 2003 — In Yotoco, José Miguel Figueroa (12) was found.
• 16 May 2003 — In Pradera, another child was found; he was listed as “NN.”
• 26 May 2003 — In Pradera, Jorge Enrique Rodríguez (13) was found.
• 11 June 2003 — On the road to the corregimiento of Tablón, in Pradera, Luis Carlos Galvis was found.
• 18 July 2003 — He was captured in Pradera.
• 23 July 2003 — A measure of assurance was imposed by a prosecutor; in one account it was imposed by “Un fiscal de la Unidad Nacional de Derechos Humanos y Derecho Internacional Humanitario.”
• 31 July 2003 — A psychiatric evaluation was described as finding him to be “una persona absolutamente normal y consciente.”
• 20 March 2004 — He was sentenced to 40 years of prison.
• 23 March 2004 — A narrative said he was fugitive from prison in Bolívar, Cauca.

Victims and bodies recovered / unidentified

Authorities and narratives described victims including both identified children and children listed as “NN.”

In one listing of “Los menores asesinados,” the following individuals were named with ages and disappear/being found dates (where provided):

1. Andrés Felipe Serna — Age: 10 years — Disappeared: Marzo 6 de 1999 — Hallado: Abril 6 de 1999
2. Daniel Alegría Valencia — Age: 10 years — Disaparecido: Agosto 21 de 1999 — Hallado: Septiembre 20 de 1999
3. N.N. — Age: 11 years — Hallado: Mayo 5 de 1999
4. N.N. — Age: 12 years — Hallado: Febrero 14 de 2002
5. José Ever Sinisterra — Age: 11 years — Disaparecido: Enero 12 de 2002 — Hallado: Abril 1 de 2002
6. N.N. — Age: 12 years — Hallado: Abril 9 de 2002
7. Miguel Angel Arce — Age: 9 years — Disaparecido: Nov. 20 de 2002 — Hallado: Diciembre 3 de 2002
8. Nahún Candelo Hurtado — Age: 12 years — Disaparecido: Dic. 6 de 2002 — Hallado: Diciembre 13 de 2002
9. Carlos Alberto Fajardo — Age: 9 years — Disaparecido: Dic. 26 de 2002 — Hallado: Enero 15 de 2003
10. Cristian Fabián Torres — Age: 9 years — Desapareció: Dic. 10 de 2002 — Hallado: Enero 25 de 2003
11. Edwin Andrés Pérez — Age: 12 years — Desapareció: Sin dato oficial — Hallado: Sin dato oficial
12. José Miguel Figueroa — Age: 12 years — Desapareció: Abril 17 de 2003 — Hallado: Abril 19 de 2003
13. N.N. — Age: 14 years — Desaparecido: sin dato oficial — Hallado: Mayo 28 de 2003
14. N.N. — Age: 12 years — Hallado: Mayo 28 2003

In addition to this list, the narrative also provided a separate “El recorrido del asesino” chronology with other dates and locations, including multiple entries for Palmira, the hacienda Cascajal, and Tuluá, and it stated that some victims remained identified as “NN.”

Additional named victims and family details (from the narrative)

The record included victim and family details for multiple children, including:

• Nidia Balanta’s son José Miguel (13 years in the narrative). It stated he was last seen alive on Jueves Santo of 2003 at 5:00 p.m. and that he was found in a cañaduzal of Yotoco; it also stated that six years? were not referenced as a separate date; it stated she recognized him in the morgue and that he had been the son in that case.
• María Mercedes Hurtado’s son “Nahún Candelo” (13 in the Palmira School section, and also “Nahún Candelo Hurtado” with age 12 elsewhere). The narrative stated the child had disappeared when he did not return from the market of San Pedro in Palmira and that he was found seven days later in a cañaduzal of the hacienda La Esperanza.
• Carlos Alfonso Fajardo Morcillo (9 years). The narrative stated he was found in a cañaduzal of Palmira after his disappearance and described his mother’s statements about the decomposition state and a DNA test.
• Luis Carlos Galvis (12 years). The narrative said he had disappeared, that the last sighting was reported by a seller of paletas, and that after investigation he was found on 11 June 2003 on the road to the corregimiento of Tablón, Pradera.

Other family statements included in the narrative were attributed to:

• Ana Ligia Rodríguez, mother of Miguel Angel Arce.
• Shirley Morcillo, mother of Carlos Alfonso Fajardo Morcillo.
• Omaira Salazar, whose child was referenced as Luis Carlos Galviz in the narrative.

Psychiatry / forensic evaluation

A psychiatric assessment described him as “una persona absolutamente normal y consciente de lo que sucedía y hacía.” It was described as allowing the Fiscalía to continue the process as a suspect investigated for a punishable conduct, based on his actions in procedural pieces.

Another narrative described that, although doctors had not emitted a final opinion, there was “certeza” that he suffered from “una sicopatía (perturbaciones mentales).”

Charges and legal proceedings

He was said to have been investigated for presumed crimes including homicidio agravado and acceso carnal violento, and he was to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

He was described as “confeso violador y asesino,” and it was also stated he was investigated as an offender who raped and murdered minors and that he was subject to interrogation and scientific testing under strict security measures in a place not determined.

Sentencing

A judge condemned him to 40 years of prison on 20 March 2004.

The judge Penal de Palmira was identified as Jairo Santaparra. The sentencing explanation stated that the conviction was imposed “por el último los niños que él violó y asesinó en el municipio de Pradera y por la tentativa de violación de un niño que se logró escapar.”

The sentencing also included an indemnification ordered for the families of minors named as Carlos Gálvis Salazar and Francisco Javier Orobio, in the amount of 80 million pesos.

Other legal details in the narrative included:

• He was said to have been captured on 18 July 2002 in one paragraph, while other parts of the narrative said 18 July 2003; the record contained both references.
• It stated that from September of the same year he remained in a maximum security prison “de San Isidro.”
• It stated that he had been fugitive “23 de Marzo de 2004,” and it described a sentence 014 by the Juzgado Tercero Penal del Circuito de Palmira that condemned him to 26 years for the death of a minor and attempted rape.

Quotes (verbatim)

“Mamá, ese señor engaña a los niños. No dejé ir a Daniela con él, le puede hacer lo mismo que a mí”.

Nidia Balanta said: “Mamá, ese señor engaña a los niños. No dejé ir a Daniela con él, le puede hacer lo mismo que a mí”.

“Lo más horrible fue la forma como lo mató. Le amarró las manos y después le hizo todo eso”.

María Mercedes Hurtado said: “Lo más horrible fue la forma como lo mató. Le amarró las manos y después le hizo todo eso”.

“Que Dios persone a ese hombre porque yo no puedo”.

María Mercedes Hurtado said: “Que Dios persone a ese hombre porque yo no puedo”.

“Pienso que si lo tuviera en frente me le tiraría encima y así fuera a mordiscos lo cogería. Que no salga nunca de la cárcel porque si sale se va a volver a llevar a los niños”.

María Mercedes Hurtado said: “Pienso que si lo tuviera en frente me le tiraría encima y así fuera a mordiscos lo cogería. Que no salga nunca de la cárcel porque si sale se va a volver a llevar a los niños”.

Manuel Octavio Bermúdez said: “Sí, yo violé y maté a los niños”.

Manuel Octavio Bermúdez Estrada said: “Tenía que matarlos obligado, para que no me reconocieran después, pero estoy arrepentido”.

Manuel Octavio Bermúdez Estrada said: “El niño que buscan está muerto”.

“Yo fui vecina del asesino de mi hijo”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “Yo fui vecina del asesino de mi hijo”.

“Cuando ví la foto y su imagen en la televisión me quedé asombrada. Fue entonces cuando recordé: era el mismo hombre que vivía en el inquilinato donde yo tenía arrendada una habitación con mi esposo y mis cuatro hijos, incluyendo a Miguel Angel, a quien habría asesinado”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “Cuando ví la foto y su imagen en la televisión me quedé asombrada. Fue entonces cuando recordé: era el mismo hombre que vivía en el inquilinato donde yo tenía arrendada una habitación con mi esposo y mis cuatro hijos, incluyendo a Miguel Angel, a quien habría asesinado”.

“Nunca llegué a tratar con él pues yo salía muy temprano, a eso de las 4:00 a.m., para el puesto que tenía en la galería, y regresaba a las 7:00 p.m. El vivió allí con la esposa, pero nunca imaginé que iba a matar a mi niño”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “Nunca llegué a tratar con él pues yo salía muy temprano, a eso de las 4:00 a.m., para el puesto que tenía en la galería, y regresaba a las 7:00 p.m. El vivió allí con la esposa, pero nunca imaginé que iba a matar a mi niño”.

“El día que se perdió me dijo que un señor Alberto le había ofrecido trabajo para ir a lavar una finca. A algunos niños de la galería también recibieron la misma propuesta del mismo hombre y ahora que lo pienso creo que debió tratarse de este señor”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “El día que se perdió me dijo que un señor Alberto le había ofrecido trabajo para ir a lavar una finca. A algunos niños de la galería también recibieron la misma propuesta del mismo hombre y ahora que lo pienso creo que debió tratarse de este señor”.

“En la galería todos me dicen que él fue quien mató a mi hijo, pues él trabajaba como carretero, reciclador y vigilante en este sector de donde se perdieron muchos otros niños”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “En la galería todos me dicen que él fue quien mató a mi hijo, pues él trabajaba como carretero, reciclador y vigilante en este sector de donde se perdieron muchos otros niños”.

“Miguel Angel era el menor de mis hijos y los sábados, cuando no estaba estudiando, me iba a ayudar en la galería. Su muerte me dejó destrozada y aún no he podido recuperarme”.

Ana Ligia Rodríguez said: “Miguel Angel era el menor de mis hijos y los sábados, cuando no estaba estudiando, me iba a ayudar en la galería. Su muerte me dejó destrozada y aún no he podido recuperarme”.

Appeals / outcome

No appeal outcome was provided in the record beyond the sentencing and subsequent status descriptions.

Aftermath / additional developments

The narrative described that he was fugitive from a prison in Bolívar, Cauca on 23 March 2004 and that the court requested investigation into his prison escape and that the full penalty be served.

Investigations were described as continuing through interrogations and tests, including the identification of minors previously listed as NN with reconstructions and scientific analysis. It was also stated that there were efforts to deliver evidence and bodies and that the child “Andrés Felipe Serna Useche” remained in the CTI as evidence at the time of a statement in the narrative.