NEW YORK: A US federal court has awarded 45-year jail sentence to the leader of a prominent Colombian criminal group on drug trafficking charges, western media reported on Tuesday.
Reuters reported that Brooklyn District Judge Dora Irizarry announced the sentence after finding Dairo Antonio Usuga guilty in the case.
According to the prosecutors, Usuga, 51, known as Otoniel, accepted responsibility for his actions in the US.
They said Otoniel led a terrorist and paramilitary organization for almost 20 years and ordered the killing, abductions, and torture of rivals and other individuals.
Colombian Drug Lord Sentenced to 45 Years in US Jail
During the hearing, Otoniel’s lawyers requested a lesser sentence, arguing that he was forced to enter the criminal world because of his poor background. They said he fought as a child soldier in Colombia’s 60-year conflict.
They also said he had accepted responsibility of his deeds.
Otoniel, who led Clan del Golfo, has more than 1,000 armed men, mostly former members of right-wing paramilitary Comanbian groups.
He was arrested by the Colombian army in 2021 near the border with Panama and later handed over to the US on the condition that he would not get a life sentence.
