Alvaro Uribe sentenced to 12 years of house arrest in a historic Colombian court ruling for witness tampering and fraud. The former president plans to appeal

Alvaro Uribe Sentenced In a landmark ruling, a Colombian judge on Friday sentenced former President Alvaro Uribe to 12 years of house arrest after finding him guilty of witness tampering and procedural fraud, a legal source confirmed to AFP.

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The sentence, expected to be publicly confirmed later today, marks the first time in Colombia’s history that a former president has been criminally convicted and sentenced.

Uribe, who served from 2002 to 2010, was a defining figure in Colombian politics, leading military crackdowns on both drug cartels and the FARC guerrillas.

Though hailed by supporters as a strongman who restored order, critics long accused him of collaborating with right-wing paramilitary groups.

The court found that Uribe attempted to manipulate witnesses to deny their connections with him and the paramilitaries.

Despite his conviction, Uribe, now 73, maintains his innocence and is expected to appeal the ruling.

The case has drawn international attention. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the ruling, calling it “the weaponisation of Colombia’s judicial branch by radical judges,” though he offered no supporting evidence.

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This powerful fall from grace could mark a turning point in Colombia’s judicial independence, as the country grapples with accountability at the highest levels of power.