Latest news with #paramilitary group
The Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Colombian court frees former president Uribe from house arrest until it rules on bribery case
A Colombian appeals court ruled Tuesday that former president Alvaro Uribe must be released from house arrest while he challenges his conviction for bribery and witness tampering. On Aug. 1, the conservative leader was sentenced to 12 years of house arrest for threatening and trying to flip witnesses who had spoken to investigators about his alleged role in the formation of a right wing paramilitary group in the 1990s. Uribe denies the charges and has appealed the conviction to the Superior Tribunal in Bogota. The court has until mid-October to issue a definitive ruling on the case, which has gripped Colombia and also provoked reactions from Uribe's allies in the United States. On Tuesday the Superior Tribunal said it approved an injunction filed by Uribe's defense team seeking his release from house arrest. Uribe's lawyers argued the former president's right to due process was violated by the arrest order against him, as well as his right to a presumption of innocence.
Al Arabiya
29-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Former colombian president uribe found guilty in bribery trial that threatens the strongman's legacy
Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe was convicted of witness tampering and bribery charges on Monday in a historic trial that gripped the South American nation and threatened to tarnish the conservative strongman's legacy. The ruling was announced by a judge in Bogota, the country's capital, following a nearly six-month trial in which prosecutors presented evidence that Uribe attempted to influence witnesses who accused the law and order leader of having links to a paramilitary group founded by ranchers in the 1990s. In a lengthy ruling that lasted more than ten hours, Judge Sandra Heredia said there was enough evidence to determine that Uribe conspired with a lawyer to coax three former members of paramilitary groups who were in prison into changing testimony they had provided to Ivan Cepeda, a left-wing senator who had launched a probe into Uribe's alleged ties to a paramilitary group. The case dates back to 2012, when Uribe filed a libel suit against Cepeda with the Supreme Court. But in a surprise twist, the high court dismissed charges against Cepeda and launched an investigation against Uribe in 2018. Uribe faces up to 12 years in prison for the crimes he has been charged with. A sentencing will be delivered in a separate hearing. The former president is expected to appeal the ruling in a high court.
