Alex Trelinski
SPAIN’S National Court has suspended the extradition of former Venezuelan spy chief, General Hugo Carvajal, to the United States on drug-trafficking charges.
The delay comes after Carvajal lodged an appeal before the European Court of Human Rights.
The National Court in Madrid ruled in favour of extraditing Carvajal last October after he was denied asylum in Spain.
He was never removed from the country because he requested asylum again which the Court in January branded as a ‘clearly abusive manoeuvre’ aimed at delaying the extradition process.
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Carvajal was arrested in a Madrid flat last September after hiding for two years in defiance of an extradition order granted by the National Court in 2019.
He literally lived behind closed doors as he never ventured outside in fear of arrest.
He was head of Venezuela’s military intelligence during the presidency of Hugo Chavez.
A 2011 indictment accuses him of working with Colombian guerrillas to import 5.6 million tons of cocaine to the United States.
He is also accused of providing ‘heavily-armed security to protect these drug shipments’ on the way to the US.
If convicted, he could face between 10 years to life imprisonment.
Political changes forced him to flee Venezuela in early 2019 and he ended up in Spain.
READ MORE:
- Ex-Venezuelan spy chief accused of massive cocaine trafficking is arrested after hiding in a Madrid flat in Spain
- Venezuelan ex-spy chief fights extradition from Spain to US
