Colombia: US withdraws extradition request
Source: Associated Press
Colombia: US withdraws extradition request
7:45 AM Thursday Sep 11, 2014
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) The Colombian Prosecutor's Office says the U.S. has withdrawn its extradition request for a rural carpenter it erroneously charged with high-stakes money laundering.
A prosecutor's office official spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk publicly about the case.
He says the U.S. Justice Department told Colombian officials it erred in seeking the extradition of Ariel Josue Martinez.
Martinez says he couldn't have made more than $911,000 in electronic money transfers as a U.S court charged because he doesn't know how to use a computer. Colombia had suspended the extradition pending further investigation.
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US accidentally requests extradition of Colombian carpenter
Sep 10, 2014 posted by Joel Gillin
The US Justice Department has withdrawn a request for the extradition of a Colombian carpenter who had been falsely charged with money laundering.
Ariel Josue Martinez was working as a carpenter in the southern region of Caqueta when he was arrested for allegedly laundering nearly $1 million. He claims he does not know how to use a computer.
Martinez has been detained since March of this year. The US recognized its mistake and canceled its extradition request for the Colombian laborer.
According to El Tiempo newpaper, officials in Bogota have recognized the error as “serious” and plan to compensate Martinez for the time in unjustly spent in detention.
Prior to his arrest, Martinez dedicated his time to cutting wood and raising his four children
http://colombiareports.co/us-withdraws-extradition-request-colombian-carpenter/
Response to Judi Lynn (Original post)
