The Special Chamber of the Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant for former Radical Change Senator Arturo Char for alleged links to cases of corruption and vote-buying with former Clan Char-affiliated Senator Aida Merlano Rebolledo.
In the order, the Supreme Court reiterated that the court decision, which even includes a request for a red circular to Interpol, is due to the fact that former senator close to Germán Vargas Lleras was able to obstruct justice, in addition to the fact that it could pose a flight hazard.
In addition, Germán Vargas assured Lleras that Arturo Char would return to the country to surrender before the Supreme Court
Precisely the former Senate President resides in an exclusive sector in Miami, USA, where he settled after resigning his seat in the Senate to devote himself exclusively to his trial before the Supreme Court.
Although it is true that he is in another country, former presidential candidate Germán Vargas Lleras, who is close to the Clan de los Char, confirmed that Arturo Char will return to Colombia to stand trial before the Supreme Court.
“I am delighted with Arturo Char’s decision to return to the country and appear before the Supreme Court. This will certainly help his defense and allow him to prove his innocence,” he said on his social networks.
Also, on behalf of the Cartel de la Toga, you ratify the verdict against ex-Congressman Julio Gallardo
For his part, the brother of the candidate for mayor of Barranquilla declared on his social networks that he respected court decisions and that Aida Merlano’s “lies” incriminating him would be cleared up.
“I have always respected the actions of the judicial authorities and for this reason have never discussed the details of the case in the public media. I have exercised my rights and will continue to do so until proven absolutely innocent. Sooner or later Ms. Merlano’s lies will be exposed not only before my judges but also before public opinion,” the former congressman wrote on his Twitter account after learning of the Supreme Court’s decision.
Aida Merlano, the tip of the iceberg
The investigative chamber of the Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant for former Senator Arturo Char over alleged acts of corruption that would directly link him to former Senator Aida Merlano, who has already been sentenced to two prison terms for violating voting restrictions and for buying votes in 2018 .
After Merlano’s escape in 2019 and after his recapture in Venezuela, the woman, who even had a loving relationship with Arturo Char, one of the brothers of the now former senator with a warrant, spoke before the judiciary of that country.
According to Aida Merlano, the Clan de los Char, again trying to retake the mayoralty of Barranquilla, paid large sums of money so that his escape from a doctor’s office in northern Bogotá, where he was going, could take place for a doctor’s appointment with the dentist.
But the statements of the ex-politician, against whom two penalties have already been imposed, are far from over. The woman said both the Clan de los Char and the Gerlein, two traditional Coastal political houses, had irregularly funded her political campaign in 2018, when she entered the Senate with Lilibeth Llinás as a bicameral formula.
At the time, Merlano of Venezuela named Julio Gerlein, the brothers Arturo, Fuad, and Alejandro Char, as well as other politicians, businessmen, and former congressmen in the framework dubbed “The White House.”
In their opinion, an organized criminal enterprise operated in the “White House” that had the technology to track the purchased votes and to check whether they actually reached the ballot box. He also said vote packs were being sold in bulk to other candidates who had used his services.
Similarly, Aida Merlano Rebolledo said that the two political houses wanted to assassinate her to avoid Colombian justice.
