Death Squad Leader Gets 31 Years

MANHATTAN (CN) - The leader of a Colombian terrorist organization was sentenced Wednesday to more than 31 years in federal prison. Diego Fernando Murillo-Bejarano aka Don Berna aka Don Bernardo aka Adolfo Paz, the former leader of the right-wing AUC death squad, also was fined $4 million.

According to the indictment to which he pleaded guilty, Murillo-Bejarano was Inspector General of the Autodefensas Unidas De Colombia (AUC), designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization.

Prosecutors say Murillo-Bejarano was the de facto leader of the organization, was in charge of narcotics trafficking, including all of its cocaine transportation and financial operations.

The cocaine shipped to the U.S. generated millions of dollars in New York and other cities.

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