Medellín, Colombia – Colombian Senator and presidential hopeful Miguel Uribe Turbay died in the early morning of August 11, 2025, two months after a 14-year-old hitman shot him at a Bogotá rally.
“The Fundación Santa Fe of Bogotá regrets to inform that Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay has passed away at 1:56 am today. The team in charge of Mr. Uribe Turbay’s care in all areas of the institution worked tirelessly for over two months, ever since he was admitted with serious injuries,” noted hospital Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá, where the senator had remained in the intensive care unit.
Image source: María Claudia Tarazona via Instagram.
The presidential hopeful is survived by his son Alejandro, who he shared with his wife María Claudia Tarazona, as well as her three daughters.
Tarazona, who has shared messages of hope on social media since the June 7 shooting, confirmed the news.
“Our love transcends the physical plane. Wait for me, as when I fulfill my promise to our children, I will come find you and we will have our second chance,” she shared on Instagram.
Miguel represented the right-wing Democratic Center party in Congress, and was the grandson of Julio César Turbay, President of Colombia from 1978 to 1982. His mother, journalist Diana Turbay, was kidnapped on August 30, 1990 by druglord Pablo Escobar as a method of deterring the Colombian government from signing an extradition agreement with the U.S. government, and later killed during a botched rescue operation on January 25, 1991.
Uribe Turbay, who was five years old at the time of his mother’s kidnapping, spoke of her as his motivation to run for public office.
“My mother has been my motivation and inspiration in working for our country. She taught me that principles are non-negotiable, and the value in integrity. As a journalist, she was loyal to truth and a believer in the possibility of ending violence in Colombia. To feel her beside me gives me strength,” Miguel stated in 2024, commemorating his mother’s 33rd death anniversary.
The June 7 assassination attempt against Uribe Turbay was carried out by a 14-year-old hitman allegedly hired by a local drug gang. In this, the 39-year-old politician was left gravely injured with at least two gunshot wounds to the head and one to his leg.
Read more: Arrest made but no answers in attempted assassination of Colombia’s Miguel Uribe Turbay: Perspective
The shooter was immediately detained by Uribe Turbay’s bodyguards, and on July 5, the supposed mastermind behind the operation was also arrested by Bogotá authorities.
Former hairdresser Elder José Arteaga Hernández, alias “Costeño”, was apprehended by Colombian police nearly a month after the attack, and Colombian security forces seized evidence that allegedly confirmed he coordinated the assault against Uribe Turbay by both contracting the shooter and providing him a Glock 9mm firearm- purchased legally in Arizona.
Since the former senator’s passing, Colombian political forces have joined in a rare display of unity, denouncing political violence and demanding security guarantees for presidential hopefuls.
Read more: Assassination attempt on Colombian senator and presidential hopeful Miguel Uribe
“Miguel Uribe Turbay represented ideas different from my own, but his voice deserved to be respected in the democratic arena. Stateless minorities continue killing; they understand only the language of violence and seek to influence the nation’s fate through bloody blows,” left-wing senator and presidential candidate María José Pizarro stated. Her father, politician and former M-19 guerrilla Carlos Pizarro, was also killed in 1990 while campaigning for president.
“Evil destroys everything; they have killed hope. May Miguel’s struggle be a light that illuminates Colombia’s rightful path,” noted former President Álvaro Uribe Vélez (unrelated), currently serving a 12-year house arrest sentence.
Current-President Gustavo Petro also lamented the 39-year-old opposition senator’s passing.
“The investigation must be deepened. It will be the competent authorities, aided by international experts, who will speak out in due course […] regardless of ideology, a person and their family, their lives and safety, must be the government’s priority,” he stated.
Featured image:
Image: Miguel Uribe Turbay intervenes in Senate session, May 21, 2025.
Source: Miguel Uribe Turbay via X.
