The Caparrapos, known for its criminal activity in Colombia as a result of their war with the Urabenos, have been met with the force of the authorities as they adopt heavy tactics to deal with problems. Despite being met with the force of the authorities, the criminal group has grown through creating relationships with ELN and ex-Farc Mafia in order to secure territory that is crucial to them.

The Colombian army seized an illegal mining site in El Bagre on January 23 and here the group had been removing gold each month with a weight of 20 kilos earning them $725,000 per month.

The action from the military and the police are a result of a response to a growth in violence that is linked to the Caparrapos with the violence removing around 200 people so far. The criminal group and the Urabenos clashed in January, and this forced 48 families to flee their village in search of safety. Following this, the Colombian army sent a military presence in order to deter any more violence.

However, the Caparrapos are more than likely going to continue strengthening throughout 2019 as they continue to operate in a clever yet ruthless way. So far, 4,000 troops have been sent to Antioquia and Cordoba in order to stop the group from growing. Despite this, there is a lack of ability to gather intelligence and this lack of knowledge is likely to mean that the army have very little effect on slowing things down.