back seat of the vehicle. One of them hit him with a gun butt. In the struggle, Mr. Vélez managed to escape and run to his house. Mr. Vélez Restrepo and his wife called the State authorities to denounce what had happened. Security personnel subsequently arrived at the Vélez Román family’s home.109 95. A few hours later on the same October 6, 1997, a meeting was held with State authorities with regard to the safety of Mr. Vélez Restrepo and his family. The meeting was held at the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior, and a delegate from the Presidential Human Rights Council was also present. Mr. Vélez Restrepo was offered various safety measures, including: “the possibility of relocating to another area of the country to lessen the reported risk,” a bulletproof vest, and a permanent police escort when he left the house. In addition he was offered two hundred and fifty thousand Colombian pesos (COL$ 250,000.00) as monthly financial assistance for three months.110 96. On the same October 6, Mr. Vélez “indicated his intention of leaving the country [and said] that nowhere in Colombia would he feel protected.”111 It is recorded that, as measures of protection until he left the country, the State provided him with a bulletproof vest and he had a permanent police escort.112 Three days later, on October 9, 1997, Mr. Vélez Restrepo left Colombia for the United States of America, with the collaboration of the Office of the 109 Statements made by Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo and Aracelly Román Amariles before the Inter-American Court during the public hearing held on February 24, 2012; statements made by Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo and Aracelly Román Amariles on June 25, 2005, before a notary public of the District of Columbia, United States of America (file of annexes to Merits Report 136/10, tome I, annexes 15 and 16, folios 81 and 86, and file of annexes to the pleadings and motions brief, tome II, annexes 16 and 17, folios 658 and 664), and note DH 2860 of October 14, 1997, signed by an adviser to the Human Rights Council of the Presidency of the Republic, supra note 104, folio 72. 110 Cf. answer to note No. DDH.GOI No. 38367/1644 sent on June 30, 2009, by the Human Rights Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior and Justice to the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (annex to the answering brief, annex 3, merits file, tome I, folios 670 and 671); note No. 4468 of March 26, 2007, of the Protection Program of the Ministry of the Interior and Justice addressed to the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (annex to the answering brief, annex 3, merits file, tome I, folio 673); note No. 3410 of November 29, 1997, of the General Directorate of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (file of annexes to Merits Report 136/10, tome I, annex 14, folio 75); record of delivery of the bulletproof vest, Ministry of the Interior, Office of the Director General of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights (file of annexes to Merits Report 136/10, tome I, annex 21, folio 103); note DH 2190 of July 6, 1998, signed by the Coordinator of the Cases Unit of the Human Rights Council of the Presidency of the Republic addressed to Raúl Hernández, supra note 107, folio 101, and note of October 7, 1997 “Humanitarian assistance for Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo CC: 70,049,928 [of] Medellín” of the General Directorate of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior (annex to the answering brief, annex 3, merits file, tome I, folio 677). 111 Cf. note No. 3410 of November 29, 1997, of the General Directorate of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, supra note 110, folio 75, and note DH 2190 of July 6, 1998, signed by the Coordinator of the Cases Unit of the Human Rights Council of the Presidency of the Republic addressed to Raúl Hernández, supra note 107, folio 101. 112 Cf. record of delivery of the bulletproof vest, General Directorate of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior, supra note 110, folio 103; note No. 3410 of November 29, 1997, of the General Directorate of the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, supra note 110, folio 75; answer to note No. DDH.GOI No. 38367/1644 sent on June 30, 2009, by the Human Rights Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior and Justice to the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, supra note 110, folio 671, and note No. 4468 of March 26, 2007, addressed by the Protection Program of the Ministry of the Interior and Justice to the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (annexes to the answering brief, annex 3, merits file, tome I, folio 673). 32