Colombian senate president accused of more paramilitary ties

[Judi Lynn]

Colombian senate president accused of more paramilitary ties
Saturday, 06 August 2011 12:01
Jian Li Zheng

http://colombiareports.com.nyud.net:8090/pics/politics/juan_manuel_corzo2.jpg

The former mayor of Cucuta has accused the Colombian senate president of having ties with paramilitary groups, newspaper El Tiempo reported Friday.

Ex-mayor Ramiro Suarez told the newspaper that in 1993 Senator Juan Manuel Corzo introduced him to a drug trafficking businessman, Jensy Miranda, who gave a total of 130 million pesos to Suarez's mayoral campaign and to former Norte de Santander Governor Miguel Morelli.

Suarez himself was sentenced for two years in jail for alliances with paramilitary groups. According to Radio Sante Fe, Miranda was extradited to Spain for narcotrafficking in 2009.

During the introduction, Corzo told Suarez that Miranda was a rancher and an industrialist, Suarez told the newspaper. But in truth Miranda was one of the heads of an international cocaine operation.

More:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/18146-colombian-senate-president-accused-of-more-paramilitary-ties.html