Colombian ex-President lvaro Uribe is sentenced to 12 years house arrest for bribery

[Judi Lynn]

1 of 5 | Supporters and opponents of Alvaro Uribe clashed briefly outside a court in Bogota where the former Colombian President was found guilty of bribery and witness tampering on Monday. (AP video shot by Marko Alvarez)

By ASTRID SUAREZ
Updated 6:41 PM CDT, August 1, 2025

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe was sentenced Friday to 12 years of house arrest for witness tampering and bribery in a historic case that gripped the South American nation and tarnished the conservative strongman’s legacy.

The sentence, which Uribe said will be appealed, followed a nearly six-month trial in which prosecutors presented evidence that he attempted to influence witnesses who accused the law-and-order leader of having links to a paramilitary group in the 1990s.

“Politics prevailed over the law in sentencing,” Uribe said after Friday’s hearing.

Uribe, 73, has denied any wrongdoing. He faced up to 12 years in prison after being convicted Monday.

His attorney had asked the court to allow Uribe to remain free while he appeals the verdict. Judge Sandra Heredia on Friday said she did not grant the defense’s request because it would be “easy” for the former president to leave the country to “evade the imposed sanction.

More:
https://apnews.com/article/colombia-uribe-sentenced-house-arrest-11800558b5fc5a6440298195ce07dbc8

[Judi Lynn]

1. Colombia ex-President Alvaro Uribe found guilty in landmark bribery trial

People hang a banner reading "Uribe guilty", as they protest against former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe outside the Paloquemao court complex while waiting for the ruling in a criminal case against him, in Bogota, Colombia, July 28, 2025 [File: Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters]
Published On 29 Jul 2025

29 Jul 2025

Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has been found guilty of witness tampering and bribery in a landmark trial, becoming the country’s first ex-president to ever be found guilty at trial.

Judge Sandra Liliana Heredia ruled on Monday that there was enough evidence to determine that Uribe, 73, 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 an investigation into Uribe’s alleged ties to a paramilitary group in the 1990s.

The case dates to 2012, when Uribe filed a libel suit against Cepeda with the Supreme Court. But in a twist, the high court dismissed the charges against Cepeda and began investigating Uribe in 2018.

Uribe faces up to 12 years in prison, but a sentencing will be delivered in a separate hearing on Friday. He is expected to appeal the ruling.

Uribe’s critics have celebrated his trial as the deserved downfall of a man repeatedly accused of close relationships with violent right-wing paramilitaries, but never convicted of any crime.

More:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/29/colombia-ex-president-uribe-found-guilty-of-abuse-of-process-bribery