Medellin to Ban Tourists with Sexual Offense Records

Medellin will ban international tourists with sexual offense records, announced Federico Gutierrez, the mayor of Medellin. The initiative was unveiled today, Wednesday, April 10, during a press conference following a meeting between Federico Gutierrez, representatives from the Colombian Attorney General’s office, the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare (a child protection government agency), and government delegates. In collaboration with US authorities and Colombia Migration, Federico Gutierrez announced the upcoming creation of a database for airlines and airport authorities to check for criminal records related to sexual crimes among travelers.

The measure would primarily target American citizens. “Any American citizen who has been prosecuted or investigated for pedophilia or sexual abuse or related to sexual cases should not even be allowed to board the plane; they should be turned away right at the airplane’s door and sent back to the United States,” the mayor of Medellin stated.

The recent case behind Medellin’s ban on offenders

This announcement comes in response to the issue of sexual exploitation and child trafficking in Medellin, recently highlighted by a child sexual exploitation case involving an American citizen. On the night of March 27–28, Timothy Alan Livingston was found with two young Colombian girls, aged 12 and 13, in his hotel room in the El Poblado neighborhood. After being arrested, he was quickly released due to a lack of evidence found by the Colombian police, allowing him to flee to the United States. Further investigations by the Attorney General’s Office, revealed police failures in securing the evidence present in the hotel room. Colombia’s Prosecutor’s Office issued an arrest warrant on April 5, and yesterday, Tuesday, April 9, Interpol issued a Blue Notice against the American citizen.