Public confidence erodes as accusations have so far claimed high-ranking officials, a prominent journalist and unveiled a sordid tale of lies and corruption

A sordid scandal involving a male prostitution ring within Colombia’s national police force has gripped the country in both fascination and disgust.

The scandal so far has claimed the head of the police chief, a deputy minister and a prominent journalist and unveiled a web of corruption, sexual harassment and influence peddling that has eroded the public confidence in the police.

At the centre of the affair is what has been described as a homosexual male prostitution network run by senior police officials, known as the “Fellowship of the Ring”, which allegedly operated within the police academy between 2004 and 2008. Officers and congressmen allegedly paid for sexual services from cadets with cars, gifts and large sums of money.

The existence of the ring first came to light in 2014 when it was revealed that at least 10 former cadets had testified in an investigation into the suspicious death in 2006 of a female cadet at the academy, which was first labeled a suicide. The cadet, Maritza Zapata, had uncovered the existence of the ring and – according to her family – may have lost her life over it.

Public interest in the case was renewed late last year when an influential radio journalist, Vicky Dávila, began airing testimonies from police cadets recounting incidents of sexual harassment by senior members of the National Police, including its director, Rodolfo Palomino.

After airing some of the testimonies, Dávila complained that her phones were being tapped and laid responsibility squarely on the police. An investigation by the attorney general’s office into the allegations is ongoing.

On 17 February Dávila aired a video that she said proved the existence of the prostitution ring, but which ended up costing her her job. The video was a secret recording made by Anyelo Palacios, a police captain, of a conversation about sexual experiences with then-senator Carlos Ferro.

The video was widely shared, and Ferro, who was deputy minister of the interior, resigned. Gripping her husband’s hand, Ferro’s wife in an interview said she supported her husband. “We have to stay together for our two children,” she said.

The same day, the inspector general’s office announced it was opening a formal investigation into Palomino over his alleged role in the prostitution ring, as well as for suspected illicit enrichment and illegal wiretapping. The attorney general’s office on Tuesday opened a separate preliminary investigation into Palomino.

Although Palomino is not mentioned in the recording and there is no apparent reference to the alleged male prostitution ring, the inspector general cited the video as evidence in the case.

This prompted Palomino’s exit from the police, although he insisted on his “absolute innocence”.

“Just as the attorney general’s office has been investigating and thus far has not found evidence linking me (to the scandal), I’m sure the inspector general’s office won’t find anything either,” Palomino said.

At the same time the broadcast of the sexually explicit conversation has spurred a heated debate about journalistic ethics, leading to Dávila’s apparently forced resignation from La FM radio station. In an interview with Semana magazine, Dávila said she believed President Juan Manuel Santos had pressured the parent company of the station to ask for her resignation.

The scandal has eroded already low approval ratings for the police. The latest Gallup public opinion in February showed that nearly 60% of Colombians disapprove of the police, up from 46% in December.