Often criticized by Trump, Colombia's president is under investigation in two US criminal investigations
The US Justice Department is looking into whether Colombian President Gustavo Petro has ties to drug traffickers, three sources with knowledge of the matter told The New York Times (NYT). A Reuters source said it was about criminal investigations by two U.S. federal prosecutors, but that neither focused directly on the Colombian leader.
According to the source cited by Reuters, the Colombian president's conduct has come up in narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking investigations handled by prosecutors in Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York, but “there are no ongoing investigations that focus directly on him.”
Prosecutors focused on combating international drug trafficking are involved in the investigations, as well as agents of the DEA anti-drug body and the investigative structure of the Department of Homeland Security.
The probe looked into, among other things, Gustavo Petro's possible meetings with drug traffickers, as well as whether his campaign solicited donations from traffickers, sources told the NYT.
The investigations are separate, in their early stages, and it's unclear whether or not they will lead to criminal charges. There is no signal that the White House had any role in initiating the investigations, the NYT notes.
Publicly accused by Trump of involvement in drug trafficking
US President Donald Trump has often criticized his Colombian counterpart, who he said in January was “a sick man who likes to manufacture cocaine and ship it to the United States”.
Gustavo Petro has denied any links to drug trafficking, praising his government's success in curbing coca cultivation and his orders to the military against armed drug gangs. Colombia's current president was once part of an urban guerrilla group and initiated peace talks with armed groups, but these ultimately failed.
Instead, Colombian publications reported that people with ties to the traffickers tried to channel funds to Petro, including through his son. The latter admitted that illicit money went into his father's 2022 presidential campaign, according to Colombian prosecutors, who, however, did not press criminal charges against the president. Gustavo Petro denies breaking the law.
Shortly after the US military operation in Caracas in January, when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was captured and brought to New York on drug-trafficking charges, Trump was asked by reporters whether the military might take action against Colombia. “Sounds good to me,” he replied.
