Aida Merlano’s extradition process to Colombia could be reduced from 6 to 2 months

To the ex-congressman and fugitive from justice Aida Merlano at least they are waiting for you two convictions in Colombia: the first (15 years) for aggravated criminal association, voter corruption as co-perpetrator and illegal possession of weapons. The second (five and a half years) is for violation of ceilings or spending limits in electoral campaigns; without counting a third, for escape, which could increase his prison sentence from 48 to 108 months.

Former Senate President Arturo Char has left the country despite the process he has before the Supreme Court

Char sent a letter to Congressman Roy Barreras informing him of his decision to step down from his Senate position.

However, recently she sent a message to President Petro asking for his extradition from Caracas – where she remains confined in a cell at “El Helicoide” – to Colombia. Petition that was forwarded to the Venezuelan government, led by Nicola Maduroon February 9, with a text almost identical to the one that, at the time, the government of Iván Duque had sent to Juan Guaidó.

Asking who, after the restoration of relations between the two nations, could finally see the light of day, after, in October 2019, the former senator threw himself from the window of a dental office and fled with a man to motorbike.

The hearing against Álvaro Uribe had to be suspended due to threats against lawyer Miguel Ángel del Río

The defender has indicated he will leave the country after receiving an intimidating call involving his family

After filing a formal request, the Minister of Justice, Nestor Osuna, confirmed the news and said: “The previous government asked the government of Mr. Juan Guaidó. I don’t want to joke about this, but the truth is that this procedure was lost.

According to Semana Magazine, the defense of the former senator estimates that she could be back in the country in about 2 months. Not in 6, which is usually the deadline for an extradition request. The above, because he must answer for his crimes in Colombian justice and -despite the scandals over the alleged benefits in his cell at ‘El Helicoide’- would be in unfavorable conditions in Venezuela: “I want to face justice and also assume all the legal proceedings that I have in progress, against all the people that I have denounced and who are totally isolated from what concerns today”, refers the publication.

Nancy González case: the Supreme Court has endorsed the extradition of the designer to the United States

According to the investigations, she and two of her collaborators sent to the North American country items made with the skins and other parts of wild animals such as whales, alligators and snakes.

The procedure is in the hands of the Venezuelan government and the time that will elapse between the request and the arrival of the fugitive former senator in Colombian territory will depend only on this, after her recovery in Maracaibo, on January 28, 2020.

Merlano is a key player in the corruption scandal known as ‘White House’ involving figures from the Caribbean region such as the former presidential candidate Alex Char and the businessman Julius Gerle in in acts of corruption and even infidelity, on a personal basis.

Thanks to months of investigation, during which evidence and testimonies from people close to the Aida Merlano campaign win a seat in the Senate, like that of his former campaign manager, Raphael Rocha they managed to trace illegal funds that propelled his career in the Senate and other crimes, such as vote buying.

At the time, Rocha himself testified against Aida, who he said was “sponsored” by Gerlein, who allegedly contributed to the Merlano campaign sums that exceeded those authorized by law: “I saw Julio Gerlein carrying bags of money to campaign headquarters.

Charges that would have been verified thanks to an operation carried out in the white house – which gives its name to the case – located in El Golf, an upscale neighborhood of Barranquilla, in March 2018, where several were found. documents which corroborate the buying of votes and the funds more injected into the campaign of the former senator. The same that it is presumed will be used against Merlano once he arrives in Colombia.