Colombian Supreme Court convicts former lawmaker and ex‑governor over corrupt contracts
The Supreme Court of Colombia sentenced former Liberal Party congressman Germán Alonso Olano Becerra to 40 months in prison for accepting bribes to influence the award of Phase III of the Transmilenio mass‑transit project. He was also barred from holding public office for four years, fined 44.53 minimum wages, ordered to pay damages of 3.44 billion pesos to the Institute of Urban Development, and placed under an Interpol red notice.
In a separate case, the Court convicted former Chocó governor Francisco Abraham Palacios Mena to 72 months in prison for illegally contracting construction and supervision works without meeting legal requirements. He received a fine of 145.58 minimum wages, a disqualification from public duties for about 88 months, and an order for immediate capture. The contracts were found to have harmed the department’s education sector, and the court noted Palacios acted with knowledge of the irregularities.
Both rulings underscore the judiciary’s crackdown on public‑sector corruption linked to major infrastructure projects in Colombia.