BOGOTA, May 1 — Colombian police arrested a suspect Wednesday in the brutal killing of a transgender woman who was thrown into a creek with broken limbs in a hate crime that sparked angry protests in the South American country.
Sara Millerey, 32, died in hospital after she was pulled out of the creek by firefighters, but not before bystanders filmed a video of her drowning, and circulated it online.
The attack, which happened in Bello, near the western city of Medellin in Antioquia department, has caused an outpouring of shock and anger and fueled fear in the trans community.
Police said Wednesday it had arrested a first suspect, a member of a gang, who now faces charges of torture and aggravated homicide, and risks 70 years in prison.
President Gustavo Petro has condemned the crime that he said was committed by “ignorant people” trying to “erase the differences” between individuals.
The office of the ombudsman in Colombia said 13 trans women were murdered in the country so far this year. In all of 2024, the number was 31.
It also reported 258 cases of violence against members of the LGBTQI+ community last year — a 23-per cent increase on 2023.
There has been a rise particularly in Antioquia, the birthplace of notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar, according to the NGO Caribe Afirmativo.
Hate crimes in the region “represent almost half of the national total,” it reported.
Congress is discussing a bill seeking to bolster the rights of transgender people and toughen penalties for hate crimes committed against them. — AFP