Colombian Police Intercept Bus Loaded With 420 Kilos of Explosives Day Before Conservative President's Inauguration

Colombian National Police intercepted and neutralized a bus loaded with 420 kilograms of ammonium nitrate on Wednesday, roughly 20 minutes outside Cali and two days before conservative President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella is scheduled to be sworn in.

The bus had been fitted with seven concealed launch ramps, according to Caracol Radio. Explosive ordnance disposal technicians carried out a controlled detonation of the device rather than attempt to dismantle it on site, according to Breitbart News, citing Colombian outlet El Colombiano.

Outgoing Colombian Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez told reporters Wednesday that the operation targeted Jaime "Mad Max" Martínez, an explosives specialist and commander within a FARC dissident faction. Martínez is aligned with the group led by Néstor Gregorio Vera Fernández, better known by his alias Iván Mordisco, according to both Breitbart and ZeroHedge, which cited the Colombian outlet Blu Radio.

Colombian authorities say the plot's goal was to attack military and police installations in Cali during inauguration events. Martínez was responsible for preparing the vehicle while Mordisco ordered the operation to produce a "high-impact event" on inauguration day, according to Blu Radio as relayed by ZeroHedge.

Authorities have posted a 500 million Colombian peso reward, about $157,000, for information leading to Martínez's capture. Sánchez published the bounty poster on social media. Martínez already faces charges in Colombia for terrorism, rebellion, kidnapping, extortion and recruiting minors into FARC ranks, according to Breitbart.

This is the second attack Colombian authorities have attributed to Marxist-Leninist guerrilla groups in the run-up to de la Espriella's inauguration. Less than a week earlier, a truck bomb exploded outside police headquarters in the border city of Cúcuta, injuring 11 officers, according to ZeroHedge.

More than 11,000 Colombian law enforcement personnel are deployed in and around Cali for the inauguration, scheduled for Friday, August 7, according to Breitbart. De la Espriella, who has campaigned on restoring order and confronting far-left armed groups, is expected to take office before foreign dignitaries and senior U.S. officials.

Sánchez, in his public statement, urged caution over amplification of the threat. "We will not downplay any threat, but neither will we allow it to be blown out of proportion," he wrote, according to Breitbart. "Calm, good judgment, and responsibility in handling information are essential."

Colombia has now had two attempted mass-casualty attacks tied to FARC dissidents within roughly a week. Multiple Colombian outlets, cited independently by both Breitbart and ZeroHedge, converge on the same figures: 420 kilograms of ammonium nitrate, seven launch ramps, a bus roughly 20 minutes from Cali, and a named FARC dissident faction operating under Iván Mordisco's command structure.

Colombian intelligence officials say the timing of the bus interception was deliberate, aimed at disrupting the transition. That assessment has not yet been tested in court, since Martínez has not been captured or charged in connection with this specific incident. Neither ZeroHedge nor Breitbart's coverage includes any independent confirmation from FARC dissident sources or Mordisco's faction, which is unsurprising given the group's clandestine status. The attribution currently rests entirely on Colombian government and police statements.

De la Espriella, described in ZeroHedge's coverage as "Trump-backed," is set to be inaugurated Friday under heavy security. Whether Colombian forces catch Martínez before then, and whether more attacks surface in the final hours before the ceremony, remains an open question as of Thursday.