The Colombian, who shares the same name as a drug dealer and cartel leader, has been jailed three times in the past 13 years. To get out of trouble, he moved to America with his family, but when he returned to his home country to visit his ailing father, he was arrested again. He is still in jail and meanwhile his father has died.
René Martínez Gutiérrez, 46, was a staunch family man and a very quiet man who never ran afoul of the law. The problem is that he has the same name as a Peruvian drug trafficker with multiple national and international arrest warrants that have led to his arrest three times in the past 13 years. The man was finally handcuffed earlier this month when he returned to his native Colombia to visit his ailing father. He was arrested as soon as his plane landed in Bogotá and has been jailed ever since, according to reports. El Telegrafo.
Gutierrez got into trouble with the law in 2010 when he went to a police station in Bogotá, Colombia, to get the criminal record he needed to start his own business. Upon checking his data, police found that René Martínez Gutierrez had an international arrest warrant issued by Peru, arrested him, and spent 8 days in jail.
After his release, the Colombian went to the Peruvian embassy, the Supreme Court, and Interpol, but none of these institutions had an explanation for what happened. All attributed his arrest to an unfortunate coincidence of names.
A year after his first arrest, Rene Martínez Gutierrez was called back to a Bogotá police station as a witness after a robbery at work. He was only supposed to give a statement about what happened, but when police checked his name against a database, he was again mistaken for a wanted Peruvian drug lord. He spent two months incarcerated with dangerous criminals in Colombia’s notorious La Picota prison until Peruvian authorities confirmed he was not the man they were looking for.
René Martínez Gutierrez moved to the United States to get out of trouble, but was arrested again
After this incident, Gutierrez decided that the best way to avoid going back to prison was to immigrate to the United States, so he and his family moved there in 2012. The problems seemed to have left, but earlier this year René became ill, so he decided to fly home to see him, even though he knew the risk he was taking.
And the man’s worst fears were revealed once his plane landed in Bogota. Interpol agents boarded the plane immediately after stopping on the airport runway, asked for his ID and confirmed his name, then took him away. He was eventually transferred to the Los Martires Police Station, where he was detained.
Unfortunately, Rene Martínez Gutierrez’s father died when he was arrested, so he couldn’t even say goodbye to him. Again, he and his family are waiting for Peruvian authorities to confirm that he is not the man they are looking for.
Publisher: DC
“Evil gamer. Amateur music trailblazer. Alcohol geek. Problem solver. Coffee advocate. Troublemaker. Infuriatingly humble zombieaholic.”