TEHRAN, May 31 - A former FARC guerrilla leader was freed Thursday on orders of the Colombian Supreme Court, drawing an expression of regret from the United States, which wanted him for alleged drug trafficking.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - Jesus Santrich, who was arrested in April 2018, walked free from the attorney general's headquarters under a heavy escort, his lawyer Gustavo Gallado told reporters.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Santrich's immediate release on the grounds that he was protected by parliamentary immunity as a member of Congress.
Santrich, who helped negotiate a 2016 peace between FARC and the government, became a member of Congress under the terms of the peace agreement that saw the guerrilla group become a political party.
He was arrested on a US extradition request before he could take his seat.
The former FARC leader has declared himself innocent of the US charges, insisting they were part of a plot by Washington and Colombian prosecutors.
"It is more likely that cocaine has passed through the nostrils of those who would doubt me than that it has passed through my own hands," he said during a press conference.
A US State Department spokeswoman said Washington found the Supreme Court decision "regrettable."
Source: AFP
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