French Citizens and Colombian Teenagers Arrested for Altercation in Medellín Hostel

Police officers in Medellín responded to a call on January 21 at Hostel Kiwi in the sector of Provenza in Medellín. Inside a short-term rental property, authorities found two teenage girls, aged 15 and 16, with two French men in their 30s. Police arrived to find signs of a physical altercation between one of the girls and one of the French men that left both slightly injured. The tussle seems to have been triggered when the French men realized that one of the girls tried to drug him by slipping some drops of a substance in his drink.

Right away, the situation raised concerns of child sexual exploitation, echoing similar cases in Medellín.
The Mayor of Medellín, Federico Gutierrez, shared the details of the case on X/Twitter to express his rejection of sexual exploitation of children and teenagers. “Last year we increased the arrests of foreigners for this crime by 1,100%. We will continue until we eradicate the sexual exploitation of children and teenagers in Medellín,” he tweeted.

The two French nationals were arrested for crimes of commercial sexual exploitation of minors, while the minors were handed over to the ICBF (Colombian Institute of Family Welfare).

However, according to the Colombia newspaper El Tiempo, investigations by the Attorney General’s Office of Colombia revealed that the teens, who had been invited by the French men to their accommodation, took advantage of the fact that the two men were under the effects of substances to rob them and beat them, contrary to the first version that was known. El Tiempo points out that they intended to steal around $700,000 Colombian pesos (approximately $175 USD) from the foreigners.

Based on this evidence, the Attorney General’s Office charged the teens with qualified aggravated theft. The 16-year-old was placed in a juvenile detention center, while the 15-year-old was released but remains under judicial oversight. Both denied the charges. On the other side, the case against the French nationals continues, and they have not been cleared of the allegations of child sexual exploitation.

Headline Photo: Casa Kiwi Hostel, Medellin (Photo: Facebook / Casa Kiwi Hostel, Medellin)