On October 13, 2025, a quiet Monday afternoon in northern Bogotá, Colombia, was shattered by the staccato of gunfire. Two Venezuelan exiles—Yendri Omar Velásquez Rodríguez, a prominent human rights and LGBTQ+ activist, and Luis Alejandro Peche Arteaga, a seasoned political consultant—were ambushed as they exited their residential building. The attack, described by authorities and witnesses as hitman-style, left both men wounded but in stable condition, igniting a wave of condemnation and concern that rippled across Latin America and beyond.
According to Reuters and the Associated Press, the shooting occurred just past noon when two unidentified assailants opened fire from a moving vehicle. Witnesses recounted hearing at least ten shots ring out before the attackers sped away, leaving residents and workers in the area scrambling to assist the victims until paramedics arrived. Both Velásquez and Peche were rushed to a nearby hospital, where Velásquez was slated to undergo surgery. Colombian police confirmed that neither man faced known threats within Colombia prior to the attack, deepening the mystery and gravity of the incident.
For both Velásquez and Peche, the journey to Colombia was fraught with peril and political tension. As reported by Latin Times and The Guardian, Velásquez—founder of the Venezuelan Observatory of LGBTQ+ Violence and a member of Amnesty International—had fled Venezuela in 2024 after a harrowing ordeal. He was detained and disappeared for several days by Venezuelan state agents at Caracas’ main international airport while en route to a United Nations conference in Switzerland. This detention, which included the cancellation of his passport and six hours of questioning, occurred during a period of heightened unrest following President Nicolás Maduro’s contentious re-election, which triggered nationwide protests and a violent government crackdown that left more than 20 dead.
Peche’s own path to exile was shaped by escalating threats linked to his outspoken political work. A dual citizen of Venezuela and Colombia, Peche had advised Venezuela’s National Assembly in 2017 and 2018 and ran the consultancy Sala 58. According to Latin Times, his decision to leave Caracas came after the kidnapping of his friend, journalist Carlos Marcano, by Venezuelan intelligence forces—a chilling episode that signaled the growing dangers for those critical of the Maduro regime. Peche’s last social media post before the attack criticized Maduro’s closure of the Venezuelan embassy in Oslo, a retaliatory move after the Norwegian Nobel Prize Organization honored opposition leader María Corina Machado with the Nobel Peace Prize just days earlier.
The attack on Velásquez and Peche drew swift and forceful condemnation from across the political spectrum. María Corina Machado, the recently minted Nobel laureate and a leading voice of Venezuela’s opposition, took to social media to denounce the shooting. "This attack constitutes a serious aggression not only against them but against all the work of protecting and promoting human rights in the region," Machado stated, as quoted by Reuters and DW. She asserted that both men had been targeted by the Maduro government for their activism and called for a "thorough, transparent, and urgent investigation" by Colombian authorities. Venezuela’s main opposition coalition, the Democratic Unitary Platform, echoed these sentiments, while the government in Caracas remained conspicuously silent, declining to comment despite repeated requests from journalists.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro responded with a message of solidarity and reassurance. "All Venezuelan citizens who seek asylum in Colombia, independent of their ideas, are welcome," he declared on X (formerly Twitter), as reported by The Guardian and Reuters. Petro also promised to expand protections for human rights activists, emphasizing the Colombian government’s commitment to the safety of refugees and asylum seekers. The country’s ombudsman’s office was equally unequivocal, stating, "The Venezuelan people deserve to live in peace and democracy," and urging authorities to ensure that Venezuelan migrants are protected while on Colombian soil.
The incident has thrown a spotlight on a broader, troubling trend: the spread of violence and intimidation against Venezuelan dissidents beyond the country’s borders. Human rights organizations and migrant groups have expressed growing alarm over what they describe as transnational repression—a pattern of threats, assaults, and targeted attacks against exiled critics of the Maduro regime in Colombia, Peru, Chile, and other Latin American nations. According to Latin Times, these attacks are part of a wider campaign of intimidation that coincides with mounting pressure inside Venezuela, where human rights groups estimate that over 280 political prisoners remain detained for opposing the government.
For millions of Venezuelans, Colombia has become both a refuge and a new home. Over the past decade, as Venezuela has been rocked by overlapping economic and political crises, waves of migrants have crossed the border seeking safety and opportunity. Among them are social activists, opposition politicians, and ordinary citizens fleeing persecution, poverty, and violence. The attack on Velásquez and Peche, both of whom have been active in supporting refugee and minority rights in Bogotá, underscores the precariousness of exile and the persistent reach of political animosity.
Colombian authorities have vowed to leave no stone unturned in their investigation. The ombudsman’s office has called on the Attorney General to pursue the case with urgency and rigor, while police continue to search for the perpetrators. Meanwhile, the wounded activists remain under medical care, their recovery watched closely by supporters and international observers alike.
As the investigation unfolds, the shooting serves as a stark warning about the dangers faced by those who dare to challenge entrenched power—whether at home or abroad. It also raises difficult questions about the responsibilities of host countries to protect vulnerable exiles, and about the limits of safety in a region where political violence too often follows its targets across borders.
For Velásquez and Peche, the road ahead is uncertain. But their ordeal has already galvanized renewed calls for justice, accountability, and the defense of human rights in Venezuela and throughout Latin America. As the world watches, the fate of these two men—and the broader struggle for democracy and dignity in the region—hangs in the balance.
