Far-right attorney Abelardo de la Espriella vowed to “eradicate” the “radical left” in response to the fraud and bribery conviction of his most famous client, former President Alvaro Uribe.”
In an interview with radio station La FM, the attorney said that Uribe’s conviction was the result of “a set-up that began more than 10 years ago and was ordered by [former President] Juan Manuel Santos and articulated by the [now-defunct guerrilla group] FARC, [Senator] Ivan Cepeda, [Justice Minister] Eduardo Montealegre and others from the swamp.
Justice has failed Colombia, no one doubts that, because in the light of the whole world, an innocent man has been condemned.
Abelardo de la Espriella
Uribe was convicted because he bribed witnesses in an apparent attempt to smear senators and prosecutors who investigated the role of the former president’s family in the creation of paramilitary groups in the 1990’s.
Notwithstanding, De la Espriella claimed that Uribe’s conviction was a political move targeting conservatives.
We who are on this side of the spectrum are not contradictors of that communist plague, we are enemies. They’ve already proven they can kill us as happened with [far-right Senator] Miguel Uribe who they tried to assassinate. They’ve proven they can imprison us as they are doing with President Uribe. And they have proven they can vilify, expropriate and do everything.
Abelardo de la Espriella
According to De la Espriella, “you can’t take these people into consideration in any way. This cancer must be confronted, defeated and punished with determination…. These people are enemies of the republic and should be treated as such.”
This cancer must be eradicated. In me you find your worst enemy.
Abelardo de la Espriella
President Gustavo Petro called on the Prosecutor General’s Office and US authorities to open a criminal investigation into Uribe’s lawyer, claiming that De la Espriella “threatens to kill a population group with a political identity, which is a crime against humanity.”
