'Former paramilitary commander, Chiquita middleman' sentenced to 20 years

'Former paramilitary commander, Chiquita middleman' sentenced to 20 years
Tuesday, 02 August 2011 11:45
Travis Mannon

A former commander of the umbrella paramilitary organization AUC and the alleged mediator between the AUC and Chiquita was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in prison for aggravated homicide and forced disappearances.

Various media reported that Raul Emilio Hasbun, alias "Pedro Bonito," admitted to murdering two suspected guerrillas in a town in Uraba in northwestern Colombia in 1997. He confessed to his crimes to receive half the sentence he would have received if he had been found guilty in a trial.

Pedro Bonito, the former commander of "Bloque Bananero," a division of the AUC, who was himself a banana-producing businessman, has been accused of acting as the intermediary between Chiquita and AUC leader Carlos Castaño to meet and sort out payments.

The banana company paid paramilitary death squads between the years of 1997 and 2004 to keep Chiquita's crops safe. The AUC is known to have committed hundreds of crimes against humanity in Uraba during that period, included murder and extortion.

http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/18041-former-paramilitary-commander-chiquita-middleman-sentenced-to-20-years.html

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