A former top commander of the Cali cartel Phanor Arizabaleta was detained by the Colombian National Police (Dijin) at El Dorado airport in Bogota Monday.
Arizabaleta had just returned from serving an eight-month sentence in the United States on charges of drug trafficking when he was apprehended by Dijin agents.
In Colombia he now faces up to 20 years in prison for complicity in the kidnapping and extortion of Alfonso Barbosa Harold Sota in June 1992. Barbosa was kidnapped and forced to hand over money and property because of a $200,000 debt owed to the cartel by his sister.
Arizabaleta surrendered to Colombian authorities in July 1995 to face charges of drug trafficking, money laundering and conspiracy. After being sentenced to 28 years in prison, the sentence was suspended in May 2004 due to heart problems.
He uses a pacemaker and is currently believed to be in very poor health.
