Dominican authorities relentless in prosecution of Colombian brothers

Santo Domingo.- The prosecution of the Colombian brothers Huber and Angel Buitrago, still in detention despite three ruling for their release on bail, reveals the Justice Ministry’s strategy of filing multiple charges to keep them behind bars.

The District National 2nd Appellate Court ‘s Penal Chamber was the first to order their release, but the authorities’ refusal to do so, their attorneys filed an appeal that was upheld by another court.

Nonetheless, just as they were about to exit the courthouse at Ciudad Nueva, the Colombians were again detained on charges of forgery. Later the 8th Criminal Chamber also ordered their release, in the third attempt to get out of jail.

This time the Buitragos were escorted to the maximum security facility at Najayo, once the San Cristobal instruction Court issued a warrant for their arrest in connection with the lab to process cocaine uncovered on a farm in that province.

The Justice Ministry says Huber Buitrago is one of the ringleaders of the network which hires Colombian nationals to smuggle large quantities of money out of Dominican Republic in false-bottom suitcases.

It says Angel Buitrago is also a ringleader of the money-laundering network, which “supervises shipments of large quantities of money of illicit origin to Venezuela Colombia and Panama hidden in false-bottom suitcases."