COLOMBIA FREES DRUG CARTEL FOUNDER FROM PRISON EARLY.Byline: Associated Press Colombia freed a founder of the Medellin cartel on Friday, 5-1/2 years into his sentence in a drug-trafficking ring that killed hundreds of people and flooded Europe and the United States with cocaine. Jorge Luis Ochoa's release angered U.S. officials, who last week requested the extradition of four Cali cartel kingpins, arguing the Colombian justice system is too lenient on traffickers. ``It's lamentable la·men·ta·ble adj. Inspiring or deserving of lament or regret; deplorable or pitiable. See Synonyms at pathetic. lam  en·ta·bly adv. that he served such a short sentence,'' said U.S. Ambassador Myles Frechette. The U.S. government tried in vain to extradite ex·tra·dite v. ex·tra·dit·ed, ex·tra·dit·ing, ex·tra·dites v.tr. 1. To give up or deliver (a fugitive, for example) to the legal jurisdiction of another government or authority. 2. Ochoa as early as 1984. Ochoa faces drug-trafficking and murder charges in the United States. Colombia's 1991 constitution forbids the extradition of its citizens. Ochoa, once the No. 2 man in the Medellin cartel behind Pablo Escobar, left the maximum-security Itagui prison on the outskirts of Medellin in a bulletproof Refers to extremely stable hardware and/or software that cannot be brought down no matter what unusual conditions arise. See industrial strength. bulletproof - Used of an algorithm or implementation considered extremely robust; lossage-resistant; capable of correctly Mercedes Benz, said Miller Rubio, spokesman for the prison system. Ochoa had been sentenced to 8-1/4 years in prison on drug trafficking and illegal enrichment charges, but the term was reduced for good behavior Orderly and lawful action; conduct that is deemed proper for a peaceful and law-abiding individual. The definition of good behavior depends upon how the phrase is used. and because of an amnesty law approved by congress to honor a papal visit in 1986. The 46-year-old Ochoa leaves prison a rich man, having retained farms and properties purchased with cocaine dollars. His brothers, Fabio and Juan David, are held in the same prison for similar crimes but may be released as early as this year. Ochoa and his brothers took advantage of a program that encouraged traffickers to surrender, confess and cooperate in other drug cases in return for lighter sentences. Nicknamed ``The Fat Man,'' Ochoa turned himself in Jan. 15, 1991, as police led an intense manhunt man·hunt n. An organized, extensive search for a person, usually a fugitive criminal. manhunt Noun an organized search, usually by police, for a wanted man or fugitive Noun 1. for leaders of the Medellin cartel, which was already losing business to the rival Cali drug gang. Escobar, who knew Ochoa from childhood, was killed in a shootout Shootout Venture capital jargon. Refers to two or more venture capital firms fighting for the startup. with government security forces in December 1993. The release comes amid increasingly tense relations with the United States over the Colombian Congress' decision on June 12 to absolve ab·solve tr.v. ab·solved, ab·solv·ing, ab·solves 1. To pronounce clear of guilt or blame. 2. To relieve of a requirement or obligation. 3. a. To grant a remission of sin to. President Ernesto Samper of drug corruption charges. Washington believes Samper is guilty of taking $6 million in campaign contributions from the Cali cartel. Frechette has recommended isolating and ignoring him. Ochoa distributed cocaine from Miami in the mid-1970s and was later indicted INDICTED, practice. When a man is accused by a bill of indictment preferred by a grand jury, he is said to be indicted. in the United States on charges of running cocaine through Nicaragua with the help of Sandinista officials. He also is accused of involvement in the 1986 killing in Louisiana of Barry Seal, a cocaine smuggler and informant for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was established in 1973 by President richard m. nixon as part of the Justice Department, thus uniting a number of federal drug agencies that had often worked at cross-purposes. . Ochoa, who comes from a family of livestock breeders, first got into trouble with Colombian authorities in 1981 when he was indicted for illegally importing more than 100 Spanish fighting bulls. He nearly wound up in a U.S. jail when he and Cali cartel boss Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela were arrested in Spain in 1984. A Spanish court rejected a U.S. extradition request and returned him to Colombia to face trial, where he was paroled and went into hiding. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Jorge Luis Ochoa His release angers U.S. |
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