A prosecutor requested that former Colombian Governor Cesar Hernando Molina Araujo be charged for his alleged involvement in the murder of an indigenous leader in 2004.
The ex-governor of the northern department of Cesar reportedly used his ties with the paramilitary group, the AUC to assasinate Oscar Enrique Montero Arias, who was the only candidate opposing Molina after two others stepped down after pressure and intimidation from the AUC.
Molina was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2010 after testimony from state witness and former AUC member Augusto Guillermo de Hoyas, alias “Memo” linked him to the paramilitary leader Rodrigo Tovar Tupo, alias “Jorge 40.” Memo stated that the governor asked for Jorge 40’s help in the election and then bribed and threatened him to change his incriminating testimony during the trial.