Jhon Fredy Ardila Burbano, alias ‘Píldora’, was sentenced to 108 months in prison for aggravated criminal conspiracy and drug trafficking as a member of the ‘Los Escultores’ gang. The Third Specialized Penal Judge of Neiva found him responsible for shipping cocaine to countries like Australia and Italy hidden in sculptures. The sentence includes a fine of 2,826 minimum legal monthly wages.
Jhon Fredy Ardila Burbano, alias ‘Píldora’, a member of the ‘Los Escultores’ gang in Pitalito, Huila, was sentenced to 108 months in prison (9 years) and a fine of $4,948,057,530 for aggravated criminal conspiracy and drug trafficking, manufacturing or possession of narcotics.
The judge emphasized his role in obtaining cocaine, hiring sculptures with alias ‘Wílliam’, and overseeing the concealment of the drug for shipments to Mexico, Italy, and Australia. Testimonies from the gang leaders, Yhon Fredy Polanco Triana and Lorena Mercedes Lozano Cometa—previously sentenced in October 2023 to 7 years and 8 months—, phone intercepts, and evidence were key in the trial.
Seizures included a guacamaya sculpture with 120 grams of cocaine destined for Sydney, Australia, on September 19, 2019, and an araña sculpture with 37 grams to Anversa, Italy, on October 24, 2019, both in Neiva. “He received orders regarding the procurement of narcotic substance, contracting the sculptures, and keeping track of the elaboration…”, the judge stated in the sentence.
Ardila Burbano denied full knowledge, claiming he worked at the couple’s restaurant in 2018, but the judge dismissed his account due to timeline inconsistencies and contrary evidence. The leaders confirmed he coordinated shipments and knew the modus operandi from 2018 and 2019.