Colombian President Alvaro Uribe was found guilty of bribery in an eyewitness tampering case. He was South America’s first former president and was criminally convicted.
The verdict was issued by Judge Sandra Heredia of the 44th Criminal Court in Bogota. He concluded that there was enough evidence to convict a former president, a member of the opposition Centro Democrats. The judge is still reading the sentence.
Since the investigation into him began in 2018, Uribe has pleaded not guilty to all charges. He maintained his position throughout the 67-day trial, during which he clashed with Senator Ivan Sepeda of the Historico Party of the Ruling Agreement.
In 2012, Uribe accused Cepeda of trying to link him to the creation of a paramilitary group — Cepeda refused — but the Colombian Supreme Court ruled that Uribe should be investigated for tampering with witnesses.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
