Colombia Detain 8 Suspects in Bogota Mall Bombing Attack

Colombian authorities detained on Saturday eight people in the bombing attack that left three dead in a shopping center in Bogota last week.

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Police Chief Jorge Nieto said during a press conference that the group has been connected to past small attacks especially in the capital city of Bogota.

"The interdisciplinary team continues with the investigation to clarify the different terrorist acts and to identify both the material and intellectual authors of these events," Nieto said.

Nieto said the group has claimed the authority of other attacks with similar characteristics and material used in the explosion.

According to police, the four women and four men detained allegedly belong to a small rebel group Revolutionary Popular Movement, MRP, a splinter from the larger National Liberation Army, or ELN.

The ELN are currently in peace talks with Colombia's government.

The attorney general, Nestor Martinez, said he will not disclose the role of each of the detainees in the attack to maintain the "integrity of the investigation." Martinez said two of those captured had been arrested in March for carrying explosives and maps, which he said would prove they were preparing an act of terrorism in the city, but a judge released them saying the material was not used by the suspects.

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Last week a bombing at a major upscale shopping center in Bogota killed three and left nine others injured. Authorities reported that an explosion hit in a second-floor women's bathroom in the Andino Commercial Center, one of the busiest in the country.

Both the FARC and the ELN, the country's two largest guerrilla groups, condemned the attack and voiced support for the victims.

Police alleged the MPR was connected to small urban cells of the ELN, but the group rejected the connection. No rebel group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

The three victims of the attack were women, including a 23-year-old French national identified as Julie Huynh. She had reportedly been in Colombia for the past six months doing volunteer work.

Nieto said authorities and the police force are still working on resolving some other 14 attacks that occurred since 2015 in Bogota.

Attorney General Martinez said two of those captured had been arrested in March for carrying explosives and maps, which he said would prove they were preparing an act of terrorism in the city, but a judge released them saying the material was not used by the suspects.