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Polo Democrático Alternativo senator Iván Cepeda affirmed today that he would appeal the decision of the Colombian justice system to release Diego Cadena, ex-lawyer of former president Álvaro Uribe.
Cadena, accused of bribery, procedural fraud and witness tampering, was released yesterday because the terms of the indictment were considered expired.
Cepeda emphasized that a judge's decision does not obey in any way to a judicial acquittal and that he will be held accountable.
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He added that it is a determination that obeys the expiration of judicial terms, but it has nothing to do with anything of substance.
"For our part, we abide by the decision and we hope that Cadena will not go on the run, as has happened on other occasions when it comes to people close to former senator and former president Uribe," said the congressman.
"The office is not unaware of the complexity of the present matter, nor of the diligence for which the court of knowledge has given impulse, much less the effort of the Prosecutor's Office," said the judge of control of guarantees in a judicial document.
"However, this is not an obstacle to disregard the right of the accused Diego Javier Cadena Ramírez to his freedom, due to the expiration of the legal term," she added.
La libertad de Diego Cadena obedece a una cuestión de expiración de términos y no a ninguna absolución judicial. El juicio contra él continúa. Acatamos la decisión y esperamos que el acusado no emprenda fuga.
— Iván Cepeda Castro (@IvanCepedaCast) October 13, 2021
"The release of Diego Cadena is due to the expiration of terms and not to any judicial acquittal. The trial against him continues. We abide by the decision and hope that the defendant does not abscond."
Accused of involvement in the manipulation and pressure of witnesses to benefit the former president, Cadena was placed under house arrest in the city of Cali in August 2020, and now he will face criminal proceedings in freedom.
According to the complaint, in this case, Uribe wanted former paramilitaries to change their version and testify against opposition senator Iván Cepeda, one of his most prominent critics and who collected testimonies in this regard.
The former lawyer is being investigated for the visits he made to former paramilitaries, apparently to persuade them to speak in favor of Uribe before the Supreme Court of Justice, which included payments and alleged promises of gifts, reports El Espectador.
On July 27, the Prosecutor's Office charged him with the crimes of procedural fraud and bribery, and the judge ordered his house arrest.
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