Former general sentenced in US

A former Venezuelan general was sentenced Monday to 21 years and eight months in federal prison after pleading guilty in the United States to having supplied weapons and protection to Colombian guerrillas.

Cliver Alcala Cordones, who admitted publicly to having conspired to overthrow Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, received the long sentence despite agreeing with prosecutors to plead guilty to helping members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia — known by its Spanish initials, FARC — in exchange for favorable treatment.

Despite the deal, prosecutors asked the judge to impose a 30-year sentence, arguing that Alcala Cordones was one of the top leaders of the drug trafficking organization, the Cartel de los Soles, controlled by the Venezuelan military and top leaders of Maduro’s socialist regime.

Evidence provided before sentencing showed the former general benefited financially from playing an active role in drug trafficking, receiving at times $150,000 per shipment. Alcala Cordones denied having any direct involvement in the illegal drug trade.

“Alcala Cordones corrupted the vital institutions of his own country as he helped the FARC flood this country with cocaine — but no longer. Instead, he will now spend more than two decades in a United States prison,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York.

According to U.S. officials, Alcala Cordones and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials served as leaders and administrators of the Soles cartel, using their power and influence within the country’s security apparatus to consolidate control of the drug trade inside the South American country.

The country’s courts and intelligence agencies were used to facilitate the shipment of tons of cocaine to the United States in partnership with the FARC, a guerrilla organization dedicated to the violent overthrow of the Colombian government, the prosecutor’s office said.

“The Cartel de Los Soles sought not only to enrich its members and enhance their power but also to weaponize cocaine by inflicting the drug’s harmful and addictive effects on users in the United States,” the Justice Department said in press statement.