Peru trial sensation: President versus spymaster

[Judi Lynn]

Jun 29, 12:41 PM EDT

Peru trial sensation: President versus spymaster

By MONTE HAYES
Associated Press Writer

LIMA, Peru (AP) -- Six months into the murder trial of Alberto Fujimori, prosecutors have produced little hard evidence that the former Peruvian president approved of a death squad to eliminate rebel collaborators. But they're about to put a blockbuster witness on the stand in a trial that is riveting the nation.

Vladimiro Montesinos, the de-facto head of Peru's intelligence service during Fujimori's decade in power, allegedly organized the Colina group, a squad of army killers who slaughtered 25 civilians during Peru's war against leftist rebels. He finally faces his former boss in court on Monday.

Montesinos, 63, was the shadow behind Fujimori as the two men crushed the rebels and cemented the autocratic leader's popularity. He was accountable to none but the president, whom he preferred to meet in pre-dawn darkness. Secrets were his stock in trade. He paid off his opponents, or used information from his spy network to bend them to his will.

And by 2000, when Fujimori's government collapsed in a corruption scandal involving Montesinos, many believe the spymaster's power had grown to exceed even the president's.

More:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PERU_PRESIDENTS_SPYMASTER?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-29-12-41-08