Colombian ex‑mayors face prison sentences and appeal rulings in corruption cases

Former Bucaramanga mayor Luis Francisco Bohórquez, sentenced to 17 years for corruption, filed a cassation request with Colombia’s Supreme Court, alleging procedural errors and a bribery attempt involving the trial judge. He said, “Quería compartirles que el día de hoy he formulado demanda de casación ante la Corte Suprema de Justicia…”.

In a separate case, Juan Alberto Cardona Henao, former treasurer of the Itagüí Volunteer Firefighters, was sentenced by a Medellín judge to 19 months in prison for falsifying contracts that caused the Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá to lose over 120 million pesos. Former Medellín mayor Daniel Quintero condemned the sentence as too lenient, declaring, “Diecinueve meses de prisión para ellos resulta ser un premio inaceptable. Pido a la justicia actuar sin contemplaciones ni matices y condenarlos a la pena máxima.”