US embassy cable - 05BOGOTA5310

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BOGOTA 005310 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/02/2015 
TAGS: PTER, SNAR, PHUM, PREL, KJUS, CO, AUC 
SUBJECT: DON BERNA TURNS HIMSELF IN 
 
REF: BOGOTA 05093 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood for reasons 
1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1. (C) Summary: Senior AUC commander Diego Murillo (\"Don 
Berna\") turned himself into authorities on May 27 and agreed 
to demobilize his several thousand paramilitaries.  He is 
being held in a police-controlled confinement area in Cordoba 
Department, where he will be investigated and tried for the 
murder of a local Cordoba official.  During the incident, two 
of the other most powerful paramilitary commanders Vicente 
Castano and Javier Montanez agreed to begin demobilizing 
their troops.  The Peace Commissioner publicly stated that 
charges against Murillo for other crimes had not been 
suspended, but that he first had to answer for the murder. 
Murillo is indicted in the U.S. on drug trafficking charges. 
President Uribe encouraged the U.S. to issue an extradition 
request but may choose to condition Murillo\'s extradition to 
his failure to comply with the peace process, including 
whether or not he fully demobilizes all his troops.  End 
summary. 
 
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The Deal 
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2. (SBU) On May 27, senior AUC commander Diego Murillo 
Bejarano turned himself over to Colombian authorities after 
President Uribe had ordered his arrest for violating the AUC 
cease-fire (reftel).  Murillo agreed to demobilize the 4,000 
or so paramilitaries under his control and answer to the 
justice system in exchange for being held in a 
government-controlled confinement area in the rural district 
of Las Piedras, Cordoba Department -- essentially a type of 
house arrest. 
 
3. (SBU) On May 31, the police transported Murillo to Las 
Piedras.  The area is under police control with oversight 
from the National Institute for Prisons (INPEC) and the Peace 
Commissioner\'s Office.  The GOC has stated that the 
confinement zone is open to international monitoring.  While 
in the zone, Murillo will be investigated and tried for the 
murder of a local Cordoba official.  The Prosecutor General\'s 
office has already sent a team of prosecutors to Cordoba to 
begin investigating Murillo.  Peace Commissioner Luis Carlos 
Restrepo said publicly that, while the other charges against 
Murillo had not been suspended, Murillo would first be tried 
for the murder. 
 
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Demobilizations Planned 
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4. (SBU) Murillo is one of the most powerful AUC commanders. 
He exerts heavy control in Medellin, where his bloc, the 
Heroes of Granada, operates, and also controls several 
thousand troops elsewhere in the country, including the 
Pacific Bloc on the coast of Cauca and Valle del Cauca 
Departments.  During the incident, Peace Commissioner 
Restrepo met with senior paramilitary commanders Vicente 
Castano and Javier Montanez, who also agreed to begin 
demobilizing their troops.  Restrepo has emphasized that 
Murillo\'s arrest brought new life to the peace process and 
will mark the start of a new round of demobilizations.  He 
reported that the first of Murillo\'s blocs to demobilize will 
be the \"Heroes of Tolova\" in the municipality of Valencia, 
Cordoba.  According to Restrepo, the Centauros Bloc, the 
Montes de Maria Self-defense Forces, the Pacific Bloc, the 
Heroes of Granada, the Liberators of the South, and the 
Self-defense Forces of Meta and Vichada are all scheduled to 
be demobilized by Murillo, Castano, or Montanez. 
 
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Extradition Pending 
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5. (C) The U.S. issued a provisional arrest warrant for 
Murillo in July 2004 for drug trafficking and is preparing a 
formal extradition request.  President Uribe encouraged the 
extradition request.  However, he may decide not to extradite 
Murillo if he complies with demobilization, as Uribe did in 
the case of Salvatore Mancuso.  We have urged in the 
strongest terms that President Uribe hold Murillo to all his 
commitments. 
 
 
WOOD