Luis Alberto Moore Perea (born September 1, 1959) is a Colombian police officer of the

Colombian National Police The National Police of Colombia () is the national police force of the Republic of Colombia. Although the National Police is not part of the Military Forces of Colombia (Army, Navy, and Aerospace Force), it constitutes along with them the " ...

. On December 7, 2006 became the first

Afro-Colombian Afro-Colombians (), also known as Black Colombians (), are Colombians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Colombia has one of the largest African diaspora, Afro-descendant populations in South America, with government ...

to reach the grade of brigadier general in the Colombian National Police,"Luis Alberto Moore hace historia al ser el primer general negro de Colombia"
''

Revista Semana ''Semana'' (Spanish: ''Week'') is a weekly magazine in Colombia. History ''Semana'' was founded in 1946 by Alberto Lleras Camargo (who would become president of Colombia in 1958) and that folded in 1961. It was relaunched by journalist in 1 ...

'' www.semana.com - Accessed December 8, 2006 and assumed command of the

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

Police Department.

Early years

Born September 1, 1959, in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, Moore studied

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

in the

Pontifical Xavierian University The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (English: Xavierian Pontifical University) is a private university in Colombia founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest and most traditional Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus, with its ...

and dropped out after a friend convinced him to join the National Police.

National Police service

In 1975, when he was 17 years old, and without telling his parents, Moore entered the General Santander National Police Academy. By 1977, Moore graduated with the rank of Sub-Lieutenant and was assigned to posts in the

Departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of Tolima and Caldas. In 1981, Moore was the first Afro-Colombian to train to become a

Mi-17 The Mil Mi-17 (NATO reporting name: Hip) is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter family introduced in 1975 (Mi-8M), continuing in production at two factories in Russia, in Kazan and Ulan-Ude. It is known as the Mi-8M series in Russia ...

helicopter pilot in the National Police Aviation, also attending courses in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. He graduated and received many decorations for achievements being the most important the one he received for his actions during the

Palace of Justice siege The Palace of Justice siege was a 1985 attack on the Supreme Court of Colombia, in which members of the leftist M-19 guerrilla group took over the Palace of Justice in Bogotá and held the Supreme Court hostage, intending to hold a trial agai ...

in November 1985 when 19th of April Movement guerrillas stormed this government building. He piloted a helicopter that dropped off Special Operations Commandoes on the roof of the building. He also supported air rescue operations piloting a helicopter during the

Armero tragedy The Armero tragedy ( ) occurred following the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz stratovolcano in Tolima Department, Tolima, Colombia, on November 13, 1985. The volcano's eruption after 69 years of dormancy caught nearby towns unprepared, even thou ...

and numerous combat operations in

counterinsurgency Counterinsurgency (COIN, or NATO spelling counter-insurgency) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the ac ...

against other guerrilla groups; the

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (, FARC–EP or FARC) was a Marxist–Leninist Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in ...

(FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN). In the 1980s, the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and Colombia started the War on Drugs in which Moore participated in numerous illicit crops eradication operations. He later became a helicopter instructor in the General Santander Police Academy. In 2000, Moore became the first Afro-Colombian to ascend to the rank of Colonel in the history of the National Police and reassigned to the Metropolitan Police of Bogotá. He was later transferred to the Cundinamarca Police Department. Before becoming General, Moore worked in the Colombian Embassy to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in London, he returned to Colombia to assume command of the Cali Police Department. This city currently suffers a wave of violence. No cesa ola de violencia
. ''Diario de Occidente'' www.diariodeoccidente.com.co - Accessed December 8, 2006

Personal life

Moore is son of José Tomás Moore, a mathematician from the city of

Santa Marta Santa Marta (), officially the Distrito Turístico, Cultural e Histórico de Santa Marta (), is a port List of cities in Colombia, city on the coast of the Caribbean Sea in northern Colombia. It is the capital of Magdalena Department and the fou ...

and his mother, former governor of the

Chocó Department Chocó Department () is a department of the Pacific region of Colombia known for hosting the largest Afro-Colombian population in the nation, and a large population of Amerindian and mixed African-Amerindian Colombians. It is in the west of the ...

and lawyer Dorila Perea. He has three brothers Jhon (doctor), José (Lawyer) and Fernando (odontologist). He is married to Graciela Diaz with whom he has three children. Melissa, Natalia and Juan Pablo. At this moment Moore is working in Washington DC at the Colombian Embassy as a Diplomatic.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, Luis Alberto 1959 births Living people People from Bogotá National Police of Colombia Colombian police officers Colombian people of African descent