Colombia Captures Drug Money Launderer
Colombia has captured an alleged drug money launderer linked to one of the country's top former kingpins, the army said Saturday.
Jose Lenoir Aguilar, accused by U.S. officials of being a front-man for detained drug lord Daniel "El Loco" Barrera, was arrested northwest of the capital Bogota.
He is alleged to be responsible for an array of crimes, including aggravated money laundering.
Barrera and Aguilar are said to have done drug deals with Colombia's FARC rebels, which have been fighting successive governments since the 1960s and are Latin America's oldest insurgency.
Barrera, arrested in 2012 and later extradited to the United States, operated in eastern Colombia, allegedly moving cocaine through Venezuela to markets in the U.S. and Europe.
His drug routes were said to extend into Panama, Central America, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.
In July, he was charged in New York with drug trafficking and, if convicted, faces up to life in prison.
He stands accused of having produced and distributed up to 400 tons of cocaine a year, illegally smuggling part of it into the United States, federal prosecutors said.
Source: Agence France Presse
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