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— Colombia's Supreme Court has convicted a former president of Congress of close ties to a far-right militia leader and sentenced him to nine years in prison.
Miguel Pinedo held the post from 1999-2000, when Colombia's so-called paramilitaries massacred hundreds of purported rebel sympathizers.
Pineda is the third former president of Colombia's Congress to be convicted of crimes for benefiting from associations with militia leaders.
A senior court official who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed Wednesday's verdict and said Pinedo was also fined $3.4 million.
Pinedo was convicted of ties to paramilitary boss Hernando Giraldo, who was extradited to the United States in 2008 for drug trafficking.
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