A judge for the execution of sentences from the Justice and Peace court lifted the precautionary measure against former paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso Gómez, who is currently incarcerated in La Picota prison in Bogotá. The decision comes one day after the JEP denied his release from prison and almost four months after the high court studied a conflict of jurisdictions to define who can carry out his proceedings.
Just one day after the Chamber for the Definition of Legal Situations of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) denied the temporary, conditional and early release of former paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso, requested by his defense, this Friday, July 5, a new chapter was opened regarding his release from prison. A court for the execution of sentences for the Justice and Peace chambers ratified the freedom of the former commander of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) and he could, according to his lawyers, be released from La Picota prison in Bogotá, where he is being held.
vThe decision of Judge Luz Marina Zamora Buitrago is based on the fact that all the sentences containing preventive measures against the former paramilitary leader were combined, most of them in ordinary courts. However, Salvatore Mancuso's freedom is still in limbo, as the Constitutional Court is studying a conflict of jurisdictions between the Justice and Peace Chamber of the Superior Court of Bogotá and the JEP. On the one hand, the former has granted Mancuso freedom, accepting the arguments of his defense, since, they say, he would have served his sentence during the time he was imprisoned in the United States. And, in addition, they point out that his release from prison must also obey the peace process that President Gustavo Petro appointed him, once the former paramilitary set foot on Colombian soil.
On the other hand, the JEP has requested jurisdiction in all proceedings against the former head of the AUC. This, after accepting him as a “hinge” or point of connection between the paramilitary apparatus and the public force. According to the Jurisdiction, the appearance of Mancuso before the JEP is being evaluated by the Constitutional Court and, therefore, the resolution of the legal situation of the former paramilitary leader, including his freedom, must be decided by the high court.
Likewise, the Chamber for the Definition of Legal Situations argued that Mancuso's request for release as a peacemaker was denied by the Justice and Peace Chamber of the Court of Barranquilla; this decision was appealed, and the appeal was not resolved by the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice, in light of the conflict of jurisdictions that arises in the Constitutional Court. For this reason, the JEP also denies Mancuso's release as a peacemaker,” the JEP explained in a statement last Thursday, July 4.
The decision of the sentencing court is based on the decision of the Justice and Peace Chamber of the Bogotá Court on March 4, when it granted Mancuso freedom and, over the months, continued to assume jurisdiction over his case. Thus, on May 9, the Chamber decided to lift 57 arrest warrants against the former paramilitary leader. Specifically, the measures were replaced by others that did not deprive him of liberty. Later, on May 21, the same Chamber of the capital court suspended the effects of four convictions against Salvatore Mancuso, based on the contributions to justice that, once again, Mancuso was recognized for.
Can Mancuso be released?
The proceedings for which Mancuso was granted freedom were in the second court for the execution of sentences and security measures in Villavicencio, Meta, said Judge Luz Marina Zamora Buitrago. “I received the proceedings with the arrest warrant, I am ordering the cancellation of the determination I adopted on that proceedings, and I am also telling the prison that on the occasion of that proceedings you (Mancuso) are no longer required, therefore, you can return to enjoy freedom, unless you are required by another judicial authority, which I do not know, in which case you must be placed at the disposal of the same,” said the judge.
In short, the decision applies only to seven cases accumulated before the Justice and Peace chambers, but there are others that the defense did not submit, says the minutes of the hearing known by El Espectador , and for which, therefore, the judge cannot decide. However, for Mancuso's lawyer, Nelson Menjura, it is clear that the court's decision "was to cancel the arrest warrants that Salvatore Mancuso had from the ordinary justice system in the Villavicencio and other Cúcuta cases, thereby giving him immediate access to freedom."
Now, the legal section must verify that the former paramilitary leader is not wanted by other judicial bodies, an issue that is in question, since his multiple processes with the justice system are divided between several courts, tribunals and the JEP itself. Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court is studying the conflict of jurisdiction to define the justice institution competent to determine Salvatore Mancuso's freedom.
To learn more about justice, security and human rights, visit the Judicial section of El Espectador.
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