Colombia-Cali Cartel-Justice
7-12-1995
^By ANDREW SELSKY=
^Associated Press Writer=
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) _ One by one, the men accused of being the world's most powerful drug traffickers have been tossed into jail as Colombia's government dealt a series of stunning blows to the Cali drug cartel.
But the victory may turn out to be short-lived.
The jailed drug traffickers _ five have been put behind bars in less than a month _ are now poised to take advantage of a lenient sentencing system they themselves helped push through a Congress suspected of being riddled with corruption.
U.S. officials have heaped praise on the Colombian government's lightning-quick strikes against the Cali cartel, undertaken with help from U.S. drug and intelligence agents.
Underscoring the importance Washington places on efforts to stem the flow of cocaine and heroin from Colombia into the United States, President Clinton congratulated President Ernesto Samper last week on his successes.
Thomas Constantine, head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, said the cartel is the world's most powerful criminal organization and punishment for its leaders should be commensurate with their crimes.
"They destroyed hundreds of thousands of lives throughout the world with their drugs," Constantine said in a recent interview in his office in suburban Washington. "They should get life terms."
The Cali cartel, which earns more than $7 billion annually and has carried out assassinations in the United States, is the first foreign criminal gang to dictate organized crime activities in the United States, he said.
He singled out Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela, arrested in Cali on June 9, and his brother Miguel, who remains at large, as "the two biggest organized crime figures in modern history."
But disappointment may be in store for those who believe punishment for drug kingpins will be severe. The Rodriguez Orejuela brothers face only a maximum of 24 years in prison if convicted of drug trafficking, said Prosecutor General Alfonso Valdivieso.
"I want them all to get life in prison, but I must abide by the laws we have in place," Valdivieso said in an interview in his heavily guarded office near downtown Bogota.
In addition to setting maximum prison terms, those laws allow for huge sentence reductions. For example, if a trafficker pleads guilty, his sentence can be reduced by as much as one third.
He can also earn reductions for helping dismantle his criminal enterprise, for good behavior in prison, for turning over profits originating from his crimes and for other forms of cooperation.
Colombia's Congress, under heavy lobbying by cartel lawyers and after some of its members allegedly received cartel money, passed legislation in 1993 permitting the sentence reductions, which Valdivieso called "excessive." He is investigating some members of Congress for links to the cartel.
"Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela may wind up getting a sentence as low as nine years, and even that sentence might be cut further for good conduct and if he works while in jail," complained Enrique Parejo, a former justice minister and anti-cartel crusader.
U.S. officials also are worried that jailed cartel leaders will get off too easy. Although some of them are wanted in the United States, where they face possible life sentences, Colombia does not allow extradition of its citizens.
Joe Toft, the former DEA head in Colombia, praised the crackdown on the Cali cartel leaders.
"However we won't know what this really means until these people are tried and sentenced. I hope this doesn't end up with them just getting their hands slapped," he said.
^By ANDREW SELSKY=
^Associated Press Writer=
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) _ One by one, the men accused of being the world's most powerful drug traffickers have been tossed into jail as Colombia's government dealt a series of stunning blows to the Cali drug cartel.
But the victory may turn out to be short-lived.
The jailed drug traffickers _ five have been put behind bars in less than a month _ are now poised to take advantage of a lenient sentencing system they themselves helped push through a Congress suspected of being riddled with corruption.
U.S. officials have heaped praise on the Colombian government's lightning-quick strikes against the Cali cartel, undertaken with help from U.S. drug and intelligence agents.
Underscoring the importance Washington places on efforts to stem the flow of cocaine and heroin from Colombia into the United States, President Clinton congratulated President Ernesto Samper last week on his successes.
Thomas Constantine, head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, said the cartel is the world's most powerful criminal organization and punishment for its leaders should be commensurate with their crimes.
"They destroyed hundreds of thousands of lives throughout the world with their drugs," Constantine said in a recent interview in his office in suburban Washington. "They should get life terms."
The Cali cartel, which earns more than $7 billion annually and has carried out assassinations in the United States, is the first foreign criminal gang to dictate organized crime activities in the United States, he said.
He singled out Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela, arrested in Cali on June 9, and his brother Miguel, who remains at large, as "the two biggest organized crime figures in modern history."
But disappointment may be in store for those who believe punishment for drug kingpins will be severe. The Rodriguez Orejuela brothers face only a maximum of 24 years in prison if convicted of drug trafficking, said Prosecutor General Alfonso Valdivieso.
"I want them all to get life in prison, but I must abide by the laws we have in place," Valdivieso said in an interview in his heavily guarded office near downtown Bogota.
In addition to setting maximum prison terms, those laws allow for huge sentence reductions. For example, if a trafficker pleads guilty, his sentence can be reduced by as much as one third.
He can also earn reductions for helping dismantle his criminal enterprise, for good behavior in prison, for turning over profits originating from his crimes and for other forms of cooperation.
Colombia's Congress, under heavy lobbying by cartel lawyers and after some of its members allegedly received cartel money, passed legislation in 1993 permitting the sentence reductions, which Valdivieso called "excessive." He is investigating some members of Congress for links to the cartel.
"Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela may wind up getting a sentence as low as nine years, and even that sentence might be cut further for good conduct and if he works while in jail," complained Enrique Parejo, a former justice minister and anti-cartel crusader.
U.S. officials also are worried that jailed cartel leaders will get off too easy. Although some of them are wanted in the United States, where they face possible life sentences, Colombia does not allow extradition of its citizens.
Joe Toft, the former DEA head in Colombia, praised the crackdown on the Cali cartel leaders.
"However we won't know what this really means until these people are tried and sentenced. I hope this doesn't end up with them just getting their hands slapped," he said.
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