ABSTRACT

From the moment they first met, Bernardo Jaramillo and Mariela Barragán talked about death. As the two drove to the beach in her beat-up Honda Accord, he casually mentioned that he and all his colleagues were probably going to die. Maybe he was trying to impress this woman who he wanted to sleep with. But for Mariela, it was less about seduction than insecurity. Behind the couple were several cars full of bodyguards. There were fifteen armed men in all. They were assigned to protect Bernardo, the president of the UP and arguably the most threatened man in the country.