General Manuel Noriega Extradited
By Naiwrita Sinha, Gaea News NetworkTuesday, April 27, 2010
PARIS, FRANCE (GaeaTimes.com)- General Manuel Noriega arrived in the Charles De Gaulle airport in France on Tuesday, a little before 8 in the morning. He is going to face a trial in the country, as per the requests of the French government, for having laundered his money, and buying three luxury apartments with it. Moreover, the money that he laundered was earned through his cocaine deals, for which he was sentenced in he United States. The period for the sentence was up two years back, but the general stayed in a Florida prison fighting the order for extradition. The General claimed that he should not be sent to France for a trial, saying that it violated the laws under the Geneva Convention, which governs the treatment of prisoners of war.
However, the United States Supreme Court rejected his claims, saying that although General Manuel Noriega is a prisoner of war, the rules stated in the Geneva Convention does not apply to him. The Supreme Court proceeded to uphold the request of the French government, agreeing to send back General Manuel Noriega to France for the trial for money laundering. The attorneys of the convicted also claimed that he should be allowed to go back to Panama, being a prisoner of war.
General Manuel Noriega had been accused of laundering the money he earned from trafficking cocaine through the French banks. His extradition order was signed by the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He would be facing the court in the next couple of months, possibly. Moreover, an arrest warrant has also been issued in Panama in his name on the charges of murder, embezzlement and corruption.
