Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe was sentenced Friday to 12 years of house arrest for bribery and witness tampering, following a nearly six-month trial that captured national attention.
Prosecutors argued Uribe conspired to pressure imprisoned ex-paramilitary members to alter testimony linking him to armed groups in the 1990s. Judge Sandra Heredia, who issued the sentence, also barred Uribe from holding public office for eight years and fined him $776,000.
Uribe, 73, denied wrongdoing, calling the case “political persecution.” His attorney requested he remain free pending appeal, but the judge declined, citing the risk he might “evade the imposed sanction.”
“It’s an unjust sentence. He deserves to be free,” said supporter Martha Peñuela Rosales. Protester Sergio Andrés Parra countered, “History has already condemned him.”
Uribe, who governed from 2002 to 2010, remains a polarizing figure. The appeals court is expected to issue a ruling by October.