Colombian court jails Salvatore Mancuso for crimes in La Guajira

A Colombian court has sentenced former paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso to 40 years in prison for crimes committed against Indigenous communities in the province of La Guajira, including homicides, forced disappearances and the displacement of people from 2002 to 2006. The special tribunal that hears cases from the country’s armed conflict said Mancuso was responsible for 117 crimes committed by fighters under his command in La Guajira, but added his time in prison could be reduced to eight years if he collaborated with truth and reparation activities that benefited victims of his former paramilitary group.

Mancuso, 61, was repatriated to Colombia in 2024 after serving a lengthy prison sentence in the US for drug trafficking. He was freed from US prison in February 2024 and deported to Colombia, where he remained in custody for several months and was freed in July after courts determined there were no prison sentences pending; he was denied several requests to be sent to Italy and holds Italian citizenship.

When he was repatriated he was named a "peace facilitator" by President Gustavo Petro, a designation that enables him to act as a mediator in talks with armed groups. Mancuso was a commander in the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) in the late 1990s, a rightwing paramilitary faction that the ruling said worked with drug traffickers and the country’s business, military and political elite and was accused of killing hundreds of villagers.

Key Topics

World, Salvatore Mancuso, La Guajira, United Self-defense Forces, Gulf Clan, Gustavo Petro