Colombia ex-president Uribe sentenced to 12 years of house arrest, document shows
BOGOTA - Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe was sentenced on Friday to 12 years of house arrest for abuse of process and bribery of a public official, according to a sentencing document seen by Reuters and a source with knowledge of the matter.
Uribe was convicted of the two charges on Monday by Judge Sandra Liliana Heredia in a witness-tampering case that has run for about 13 years. He has always maintained his innocence.
The sentencing document, also published by local media, came hours ahead of the hearing where Heredia will read the sentence in court.
Uribe will also be fined $578,000, the document showed, and barred from public office for more than eight years.
Uribe, whose legal team has said he will appeal the ruling, is to report to authorities in Rionegro, in Antioquia province, where he resides, and then "proceed immediately to his residence where he will comply with house arrest," the document said.
The conviction made him the country's first ex-president to ever be found guilty at trial and came less than a year before Colombia's 2026 presidential election, in which several of Uribe's allies and proteges are competing for top office.
It could also have implications for Colombia's relationship with the United States. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this week that Uribe's conviction was a "weaponization of Colombia's judicial branch by radical judges" and analysts have said there could be cuts to U.S. aid in response.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Tech Reporting suspected advanced cyber attacks will provide a defence framework: Shanmugam
Business Singapore's US tariff rate stays at 10%, but the Republic is not out of the woods yet
Asia Asia-Pacific economies welcome new US tariff rates, but concerns over extent of full impact remain
Business ST explains: How Trump tariffs could affect Singapore SMEs, jobs and markets
Asia Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupts
Singapore Thundery showers expected on most days in first half of August
Singapore Synapxe chief executive, MND deputy secretary to become new perm secs on Sept 1
Singapore 5 women face capital charges after they were allegedly found with nearly 27kg of cocaine in S'pore
Uribe, 73, and his supporters have always said the process is a persecution, while his detractors have celebrated it as deserved comeuppance for a man who has been accused for decades of close ties with violent right-wing paramilitaries but never convicted of any crime until now.
TESTIMONIES FROM FORMER PARAMILITARIES
Uribe, who was president from 2002 to 2010 and oversaw a military offensive against leftist guerrillas, was charged over allegations he ordered a lawyer to bribe jailed paramilitaries to discredit claims he had ties to their organizations.
Those claims stemmed from leftist Senator Ivan Cepeda, who collected testimonies from former paramilitaries who said Uribe had supported their organizations in Antioquia, where he once served as governor.
Uribe alleged in 2012 that Cepeda orchestrated the testimonies in a plot to tie him to the paramilitaries, but the Supreme Court ruled six years later that Cepeda had not paid or pressured the ex-paramilitaries.
Instead, the court said it was Uribe and his allies who pressured the witnesses. Cepeda has been classed as a victim in the case and attended Monday's hearing.
Two jailed former paramilitaries testified that Diego Cadena, the lawyer formerly representing Uribe, offered them money to testify in Uribe's favor.
Cadena, who is also facing charges, has denied the accusations and testified, along with several other ex-paramilitaries, on Uribe's behalf.
Each charge carried a potential sentence of six to 12 years.
Uribe, who was placed under house arrest for two months in 2020, is head of the powerful Democratic Center party and was a senator for years both before and after his presidency.
He has repeatedly emphasized that he extradited paramilitary leaders to the United States.
Colombia's truth commission says paramilitary groups, which demobilized under deals with Uribe's government, killed more than 205,000 people, nearly half of the 450,000 deaths recorded during the ongoing civil conflict.
Paramilitaries, along with guerrilla groups and members of the armed forces, also committed forced disappearances, sexual violence, displacement and other crimes.
Uribe joins a list of Latin American leaders who have been convicted and sometimes jailed, including Peru's Alberto Fujimori, Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Ecuador's Rafael Correa, Argentina's Cristina Fernandez and Panama's Ricardo Martinelli. REUTERS
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
34 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Singapore High Court rules that property ‘decoupling' is illegal if done solely to avoid taxes
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox While buyers are free to hold their stakes in a 99-to-1 arrangement, the transaction could be illegal if the decoupling was undertaken to avoid paying more tax. SINGAPORE – Couples who transfer full ownership of their first home to one spouse – a gambit known as 'decoupling' – so that the other can buy another property without the additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD), are breaking the law if the sole purpose of the move is to avoid tax, the High Court has found. The finding stemmed from a recent dispute involving an unmarried couple who held their first property in the ratio of 99 to 1 in favour of the woman. But when they broke up, the former boyfriend claimed he owned at least half of the home, and not just 1 per cent. A reason for holding the property 99-to-1 was that they had planned a decoupling to avoid the ABSD for their second property. This would be achieved when the boyfriend transferred away his minute share so that he can buy a second property as a non-owner. Although the decoupling did not materialise, the court scrutinised such transactions and found that owners who decouple in this manner could be committing tax evasion as well as the underpayment of stamp duty if the 99-to-1 holding was found to be a sham. High Court Judge Lee Seiu Kin noted that while buyers were free to hold their stakes in a 99-to-1 arrangement, the transaction could be illegal if the decoupling was undertaken to avoid paying more tax. For instance, if the 1 per cent owner gave up the share but had an arrangement to still co-own the same property, the individual would be deemed to have evaded tax by wrongful declaration of ownership interests. If that same owner – while still a 'beneficial' owner of the first property – then bought another residence without paying ABSD, he could be accused of using the decoupling scheme to dupe the taxman. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore New vehicular bridge connecting Punggol Central and Seletar Link to open on Aug 3 Singapore Tengah facility with over 40 animal shelters, businesses hit by ticks Singapore HSA investigating teen who was observed to be allegedly vaping in MRT train Singapore 60 years of building Singapore Asia 'Every day, we think about how to upgrade': China's factories see rise in robot adoption Singapore Sheng Siong to open first store in Orchard by end-August Sport Spurs captain Son Heung-min says he is leaving the English Premier League club Life Tastemakers: Burnt-out serial entrepreneur cooks up $16m success with Lau Wang Claypot Delights Finally, the move to use the 1 per cent as a ploy to save on buyer's stamp duty could attract the penalty of underpayment of tax because a joint owner typically pays duty on 50 per cent of the property. Tax evasion and avoidance The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) did not comment on Justice Lee's finding specifically but noted that any breaches of tax law depend on the specific circumstances of each case. For tax avoidance, Iras will check whether the arrangement 'is artificial, contrived or has little or no commercial substance and is designed to obtain a tax advantage that is not intended by Parliament'. As for tax evasion, this happens when individuals deliberately provide Iras with inaccurate or incomplete information with the aim of reducing their tax liability. Iras says it takes a serious view against those who evade or avoid tax, as well as professionals who promote or facilitate tax avoidance arrangements. The couple in the recent case did not breach any tax law because they neither decoupled nor bought a second property. Buyers should act in good faith Singapore's leading tax expert Stephen Phua said the case should serve as a cautionary tale for property buyers to act in good faith and avoid having secret arrangements to hide their true ownership interests. Decoupling is not wrong if a joint owner makes an outright transfer of his share in that property because this owner, who no longer has any property, can then buy another without being liable for ABSD. 'The problem comes if the owner continues to retain a beneficial interest in the property after the transfer via a secret arrangement. If this scheme is exposed, such as in a dispute, the consequences could be severe,' said Associate Professor Phua, who teaches tax laws at NUS. Take a couple who hold their first property 99-to-1 as part of a decoupling plan to buy a second property. They could be in trouble if it is found that they intended to share both properties jointly. In this example, Prof Phua says the couple could face two tax penalties – one for underpayment of stamp duty in the decoupling, and another for not paying ABSD on the second property. Justice Lee's finding comes about two years after Iras clamped down on an unrelated 99-to-1 ABSD avoidance scheme that involved first-time buyers using artificial transfer agreements to rope in relatives for mortgage purposes. An insurance broker told The Straits Times that he has come across at least five lawyers being sued by clients due to Iras enforcement. He added: 'I think it is prudent for lawyers to study the latest court case carefully when advising clients on transfers of properties between co-owners, especially if it is being done with the view of buying another residential property.'
Straits Times
34 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Up to a million young Catholics expected for grand Pope Leo vigil in Rome on Aug 2
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Catholic youths waving flags during the Profession of Faith as part of the Youth Jubilee, in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, on July 31. ROME - Up to a million young Catholic believers are expected for a night-time vigil led by Pope Leo XIV on Aug 2, the culmination of a week-long pilgrimage, a key event in the Jubilee holy year. The 'Jubilee of Youth' – when the Vatican invites Catholics aged 18 to 35 to the seat of the global Church's power – has seen thousands of young pilgrims from around the world flood Rome this week. It is taking place just under three months since 69-year-old Leo – the first American pope – took over the papacy. Large groups of pilgrims have packed the streets of Rome all week, waving the flags of their countries or cities and chanting religious songs. Excitement has mounted over the course of the week for the new pope's final appearance to the youths on Aug 2. 'I feel mainly curiosity, as we don't know him very well yet,' Parisian student Alice Berry, 21, told AFP. 'What does he have to say to us? What is his message for young people?' Uncertainty, anxiety Various events have been planned for them by the Church throughout the city, including at Circus Maximus, where approximately 1,000 priests were on hand to take confession on Aug 1. Some 200 white gazebos lined the hippodrome where chariot races were once held in Ancient Rome, where youth lined up to speak to priests in 10 different languages. Spanish was one of the main languages heard on the streets of the Italian capital. The pilgrimage is taking place as economic uncertainty hits young people across the world and as climate change anxiety rises among the under-30s. Many young pilgrims said they wanted to hear the Vatican's position on climate change, wars and economic inequalities. Samarei Semos, 29, said she had travelled three days from her native Belize to get to Rome. 'We are still trying to understand his leadership,' she said of the new pope, adding she hoped he would have a strong say about 'third world countries'. The pilgrimage also comes amid global alarm over starvation in Israel-blockaded Gaza, and more than three years into Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Night vigil The Vatican has praised Catholic youths who travelled to Rome from war-scarred countries like Ukraine or Syria, with Pope Leo repeatedly calling for the youths to 'pray for peace'. The voices of the amassed young people 'will be heard to the end of the earth,' Pope Leo told them earlier this week. The Vatican has said that more than 146 countries are represented. The mass that is the climax of the event will take place in Rome's Tor Vergata area in a vast open-air space with a newly built stage for the pope. It is the same area used 25 years ago for the last youth jubilee under Pope John Paul II. More than 4,300 volunteers will be working the event to welcome the young pilgrims, along with over 1,000 police, according to organisers. In an unprecedented move, Leo hosted a mass on July 29 for Catholic social media influencers, signalling the Vatican's openness to supporting the Internet-savvy youth. Rome authorities have tightened security in the city – which has seen an unprecedented number of people, with both tourists and pilgrims inundated the city. AFP
Independent Singapore
an hour ago
- Independent Singapore
‘I feel stuck' — Singapore woman says ex-husband left her with S$230k debt
SINGAPORE: A 24-year-old woman has expressed her frustration on social media after her 30-year-old ex-husband left her with a mountain of debt totalling S$230,000. Posting on the r/singaporefi forum, she shared that in the early days of their relationship, everything seemed fine. 'Everything was okay,' she wrote. 'I had my own savings. I was happy.' Both of them were working; she was earning around S$4,000 after CPF, and they were living peacefully with their child at her mother's home. However, a few months later, she discovered that her ex-husband had lied about having a job. At the time, he tried to reassure her by saying 'he was going to start a business.' Believing in him and wanting to be supportive, she lent him money and even took out 'unsecured loans' in her name for his business. These loans eventually added up to S$145,000. And since he always paid her back on time at first, she thought everything was under control. Unfortunately, that couldn't have been further from the truth. She later learned that her ex-husband had approached her brother to borrow S$43,000, supposedly to 'top up' their BTO payment — something that left her stunned, as they had never even applied for a BTO flat in the first place. On top of that, he had taken out loans from illegal moneylenders, which she only discovered after receiving threatening messages demanding that she repay S$2,700. He had also borrowed money from other family members and even reached out to their friends for cash. 'The money he borrowed from our friends was his plan to scam them that he would do investments with great returns etc, he used my NRIC to create new phone lines from SingTel and StarHub (delivered to my house, so not much verification needed) then sell off the phone., he used my Grab PayLater account for his transport and it increases from there bit by bit,' she shared.w The woman clarified that she had been in the dark about all of this, as much of her attention went into her medical treatment. 'He was trying to cover another hole by digging another hole, and for you guys that might think, why didn't you know about all of this, it's impossible you're his wife! I had to quit my job because I was admitted to the hospital because my blood was toxic, so I had to do kidney dialysis, so I've been in and out of the hospital.' The woman said that her ex-husband, amidst all the turmoil, asked for a divorce 'because he said he wants to file for bankruptcy so no one can claim him.' As her ex-husband 'ran away like a coward' and left her to bear all of it, she eventually fell into a depression, and had to see a psychiatrist last month. Unfortunately, the woman shared that even to this day, the people her ex-husband borrowed money from have not stopped chasing her for repayment. Despite making it clear that she was unaware of many of the loans and is in no position to settle the debts immediately, she said they continue to contact her regularly. 'They still ask me every single day when I can pay them back because the reasoning for the owed amount was that 'he borrowed for us.' [They're] growing impatient even though I've said that I'm in no position to pay everything back immediately,' she wrote. See also Morning Digest, Dec 4 'There's line of creditors always calling me debts are a total of S$230,000. S$100k+ DCP and the rest are just family, friends, GPL, phone lines. I feel stuck, I've been actively searching for a job but I'm left with no answers and my freelance jobs only earn me about S$2.7k (NO CPF),' she continued. The woman also wrote that she's putting her story out there to serve as a cautionary tale and so that others can 'feel better about their financial situation.' She ended her post with a firm message to her ex-husband, writing, 'What would you do if you were in my situation and knowing that my ex-husband is always on Reddit, so Joshua, if you are seeing this, don't run away from the mess you created.' 'Karma always finds a way to deal with those who deserve it.' Since the post went up two days ago, many Reddit users have taken to the comments section to criticise her ex-husband for his actions and apparent lack of accountability. 'Joshua, if you are here reading this. Man the heck up and take responsibility,' one user wrote. 'You are a father and a husband. It's never too late to make things right and take some accountability for your poor decisions. There is a long way to go in life, and it's still not too late to own up!! Don't make your wife and your child the victim here.' Another user commented, 'Joshua, karma always finds a way to deal with those who deserve it, regardless of religion.' A third said, 'There's a lot of horror husband stories but this is one of the worst I've ever heard. I am in admiration of the way you are handling all this stress. Definitely go after him for alimony and child support in the divorce. Demand that your 'alimony' be the amount of debt repayment he incurred.' A fourth added, 'You're way too young to be facing something like this. Sorry to hear this, and sorry your pos husband did this to you. Hope you can work your way out slowly and take this as a lesson, you still have a much, much brighter and long future ahead.' In other news, a domestic helper from the Philippines has reached out online for advice after a difficult first week on the job in Singapore, saying she has been overworked and sleep-deprived while caring for an elderly man. In her post, the helper shared that she spends the entire day cleaning the house and attending to the elderly man's needs, with no proper breaks. Her only time to sit, she said, is during meals. 'My only time to sit down at daytime is my mealtime, and at night I don't have enough sleep,' she wrote on the Direct Hire Transfer Singapore Maid / Domestic Helper Facebook group. 'I get up every 1 or 2 hours to help Grandpa's urinal. I'm overworked here at my employer's house.' Read more: Maid says she's overworked and sleep-deprived after just one week caring for elderly man in Singapore
