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U.S. Citizen Detained After Neighbors Record Apparent Assault on Child in Bogotá Balcony

Preliminary medical checks later reported no signs of sexual abuse and authorities say investigations and forensic interviews will determine what happened next

Overview

  • Neighbors in the Usaquén neighborhood recorded and shouted at a man they saw on a residential balcony with a child, prompting police and childhood protection units to enter the apartment and remove three minors aged 4, 7 and 15.
  • Police arrested the U.S. citizen as a suspected perpetrator of 'acto sexual abusivo con menor' and placed him at the Fiscalía for judicial review while children were taken for urgent medical and psychological care.
  • Several outlets later reported that initial medical examinations and early interviews found no physical signs of sexual abuse and that the detained man was released by prosecutors pending further inquiry.
  • Authorities confirmed the man entered Colombia on June 6 through El Dorado airport with no alerts on his record, and reporting says the children were involved in an adoption process handled through a private intermediary called Iapas rather than directly by the ICBF.
  • The case has prompted public debate after President Gustavo Petro suggested the man may have been helping a choking child, and officials have emphasized that planned forensic interviews, including Cámara de Gesell sessions, must establish facts before assigning responsibility.