Colombia’s Supreme Court will investigate two more senators for their alleged ties to paramilitary organization AUC.
The high court will investigate ties between Eduardo Merlano and paramilitary groups from the northern Bolivar department, as well as links between Senator Juan Fernando Cristo with other extreme-right groups.
After Merlano was dismissed from his post and disqualified from serving in public office for 10 years on Tuesday for refusing to comply with traffic police and take a breathalyzer test, new light has been shed on his background to raise suspicion that he may be linked with paramilitary groups.
For his part, Senator Cristo will be under investigation after statements from political sources close to him brought to light alleged links with insurgent groups.
The courts claim there is now enough evidence to begin investigations on both Merlano and Cristo for being involved in parapolitics, a term used to describe the ties between the once-determined terrorist and now-demobilized paramilitary organization AUC, and Colombian lawmakers and public officials.