Former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, appeared on Monday at the Paloquemao Judicial Complex, in Bogotá, as part of the trial he faces for alleged bribery to witnesses and procedural fraud.
The judicial diligence, which extended throughout the day, marked the ex -president’s first intervention before the judge who takes the case.
Recall that, Uribe is prosecuted for facts related to the supposed pressure to internal ones to change versions that linked him to paramilitarism.
And that, the origins of the process date back to a complaint filed by Uribe himself against Senator Iván Cepeda. However, the Supreme Court considered that There were indications that Uribe and his surroundings could have resorted to improper mechanisms to alter statements in your favor.
Álvaro Uribe broke the silence in trial for witness manipulation
Uribe arrived at the court around 8:30 in the morning. His intervention lasted for about nine hours, in which he made a thorough review of his personal and political career, and He responded to the accusations he faces.
In his statement, the former president declared himself a victim of illegal interceptions and of a process that, according to him, has ignored the evidence that could favor it.
They intercepted him, violated the constitutional right that is the secret of the lawyer-client relations.
During the audience, one of the recordings in which appears talking about the case with his lawyer Diego Cadena, Within the framework of the legal strategy with the witness Juan Guillermo Monsalve.
“All I need is to tell the truth, because that is for the Supreme Court, please see if the Pope or someone tells him to receive it.”it is heard in one of the revealed interceptions.
The ex -president insisted that his intention It was never manipulating testimonies, but the Court knew all the elements to make a decision based on the truth.
Álvaro Uribe knows or not Juan Guillermo Monsalve?
Uribe was emphatic in which He doesn’t know Monsalve, considered a key witness against him. He also mentioned Pablo Hernán Sierra, another of those indicated in his statement, and of those who claimed not to have any link.
In his speech, the former president also referred to the role of justice in this process, particularly in what he considered a omission against the complaints his defense filed against Senator Iván Cepeda.
Why had we denounced Dr. Cepeda to declare on those witnesses to the Itagüí prison, and they never called me?
Now, to defend against accusations for alleged manipulation of inmates, your legal team He summoned 70 witnesses.
