One of Colombia’s high courts has ruled that former director of the DAS, Miguel Maza, wrongfully imprisoned innocent men during the course of the investigation into the 1989 assassination of the late presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan.
Colombia’s National Police and Prosecutor General’s office have been ordered by the State Council to pay about $1.5 million in compensation for the wrongful imprisonment of three men who were accused of being involved with the murder of Galan.
The three men in question were detained for over three years in separate prisons for the crime of murder of a presidential candidate for terrorist purposes. Recent investigations however revealed that both the arrests and evidence compiled against the men were based upon many irregularities.
“This case presented a serious violation of the rights [of the wrongfully detained] and discredited the good name and honor of the aforementioned victims…These people were subjected to public ridicule and were showcased as being the perpetrators for the assassination of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan Sarmiento which was an event that shocked the whole country and inspired hatred, public scorn and rejection of these people,” said the Prosecutor’s General’s Office.
stigmatized
tarnished