It was around one in the morning on Monday in Cartagena’s historic center. A man, wanted by the police after an alleged violent robbery, decided that the best place to disappear was inside a garbage container.
He had no idea what would happen next. The collection truck arrived as it did every night, lifted the container, and emptied its contents into the compactor hopper without the driver knowing there was a person inside. The system did its usual mechanical job: compress. Only this time, it also compressed a body.
The driver stopped when he noticed something strange, but it was already too late. He had to receive medical assistance for an anxiety attack when he realized what he had just caused through no fault of his own. Firefighters, the National Police, the Local Police, and forensic specialists took turns at the scene for hours until they confirmed the death and removed the body from the truck.