President Gustavo Petro reported a decline in Colombia's main violence indicators during the first month of 2026, based on preliminary National Police data. The figures indicate reductions in homicides, feminicides, and other crimes, with emphasis on the technical analysis of the data.
Colombia's President Gustavo Petro took to his X account to spotlight security improvements at the start of 2026. Preliminary National Police figures, used as an international benchmark, show homicides fell by 4.61%, from 1,344 cases in the same period of 2025 to 1,282, with a rate of 25.7 per 100,000 inhabitants. Petro noted that initial data demands technical precision, as "only after the Forensic Medicine data, the Prosecutor's Office determines if there was a homicide or not".
The report indicated 765 municipalities without homicides, and 15 departments along with 15 capitals experienced reductions in this crime. Feminicides dropped 52%, from 21 to 10 cases. On massacres, there were 12 incidents with 39 victims, compared to 12 with 40 in 2025, a 2.5% decrease in victims. Additionally, six police officers have been killed so far this year.
Other crimes also declined: extortion by 56.6%, personal injuries by 3.8%, and theft from persons by 18.3%. Kidnappings totaled 14, less than half of the 27 in 2025, with five linked to common crime and nine to organized armed groups. Petro stated that "in 2026 there have been 14 kidnappings".
In anti-drug efforts, authorities seized 51,831 kilograms of drugs and destroyed 260 labs. Against armed groups, two operations led to 14 captures and six killed. For environmental crimes, there were 513 arrests and 690 mines intervened, while smuggling operations captured eight people, seizing 3,559,335 units and impacting criminal economies by $124.809 million pesos.
These reports highlight ongoing security initiatives, though Petro stressed the value of Police National data for global comparisons.
