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The Colombian Prosecutor’s Office had been processing the extradition of businessman Carlos Mattos for almost two years, in the processes that are being followed for bribing judges in the Hyundai case. There are confessions, recordings, documents …
Therefore, although they told EL TIEMPO that they respect the ruling of the Constitutional Court of Spain that stopped the process, they are going to insist on the extradition of Mattos.
(We invite you to read: Spain stops the extradition of Carlos Mattos and grants him protection)
“We are not going to allow the case to go unpunished in Colombia,” high-ranking sources from the prosecuting body assured this newspaper.
As EL TIEMPO reported in scoop, the Spanish Constitutional Court this Friday halted the extradition within a decision that, for some, could even force Colombia to adjust its legislation or the treaty with that country.
(You may be interested: Carlos Mattos signs agreement and stops commercial dispute in Hyundai case)
The decision indicates that for the extradition request to take effect, judicial control is required at the origin, to guarantee the rights of the extradited person.
“This means that Colombia did not present the arrest warrant for extradition purposes issued by a judge, after the nullity of the proceedings was decreed. Since there is no such endorsement from the judicial authority, the extradition does not proceed ”, explained to EL TIEMPO the criminal lawyer Iván Cancino, who together with the lawyer Cruz Sánchez promoted the protection that Mattos had just been granted.
(Also: arrest warrant extended against businessman Carlos Mattos)
For Cancino, the error is so serious that the court did not study the other causes presented by the defense.
This means that Colombia did not present the arrest warrant for extradition purposes issued by a judge, after the nullity of the proceedings was decreed
The other extradition
That detail, which seems like a technicality, stopped for now the two processes that are being followed against the businessman as allegedly responsible for bribery, for having paid gifts to the municipal civil judge of Bogotá for him to benefit him in the Hyundai case.
(It could be of interest to you: The testimonies that have Mattos one step away from extradition)
But, for Cancino, it is clear that the other extradition request, linked to the bribery case of Judge Ligia del Carmen Hernández, also affects. It even says that if the Prosecutor’s Office appeals, up to 48 months may pass, and then Mattos’s age would be added to the issue, who is now 73 years old.
However, the Prosecutor’s Office is clear that there is abundant evidence and that they will insist on Mattos’s extradition: “We will not let the case go unpunished in Colombia.”
INVESTIGATIVE UNIT
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