United States authorities on Thursday will officially request the extradition of captured drug lord “El Loco Barrera,” said Colombia’s National Police Director.
Police Director Jose Roberto Leon Riaño announced that the U.S. will request the extradition of Daniel El Loco Barrera to faces charges in three courts for drug trafficking and money laundering.
“The capture of Barrera is the most important of the last three years, because it was the point of convergence between FARC, drug traffickers and paramilitaries,” he said.
“The last of the great capos,” as designated by President Juan Manuel Santos, was arrested in a Venezuelan town little more than 10 miles from the Colombian border Tuesday while making a phone call.
Though Colombia has also asked for the extradition of the drug lord, the final decision of where the captured drug king pin will be sent rests in the hands of the Venezuelan government despite the pending requests.
The Police Director also revealed that two alleged Colombian accomplices of the capo were arrested. The woman, who was thought to be in charge of organizing drug routes, was identified only as alias “Rosario” while the man, identified by the alias “Lucho” is thought to have been Barrera’s driver.
Leon Riaño also mentioned possible drug ties between Barrera and the FARC.
The director did not rule out further arrests in Venezuela based on the analysis of the information obtained from computers and other documents which have been seized during operations.
El Loco Barrera is considered one of the biggest Colombian capos of the past ten years who has been involved with drug trafficking since the late 1980s. The drug lord was arrested and briefly detained in 1990 but escaped prison and was able to expand his drug business uninterrupted until Tuesday.
