Interpol denied Colombia’s request to issue a capture warrant to former DAS director Maria del Pilar Hurtado, currently residing in Panama with political asylum, local media reported Thursday.
Colombia’s National Police Commander Oscar Naranjo confirmed that the General Secretary of Interpol chose not to issue a red notice – a provisional arrest warrant with a view to extradition – to Del Pilar Hurtado who is charged with illegally wiretapping Supreme Court magistrates, government opponents, journalists and human rights campaigners during the Uribe administration.
“With the date July 26, the Office of Judicial Affairs of the Secretary General of Interpol in Lyon, [France] has communicated to Colombia that for reasons related to statutes of the organization, it will not proceed with the emission of an immediate capture order against Maria del Pilar Hurtado,” reported newspaper El Espectador.
The Prosecutor General’s Office of Colombia made an official request for the red notice June 9. The former public official has resided in Panama since November 2010. Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli has promised not to extradite Del Pilar Hurtado to Colombia.
