BOGOTA, Colombia - The United States on Friday asked for the extradition of eight people arrested as part of a sting operation to dismantle a false-passport ring, although U.S. officials disputed Colombian suggestions the suspects were linked to Middle East terrorists.
The eight foreign nationals — seven Colombians and one Palestinian native — were among 19 people arrested in 32 simultaneous raids across the country. Authorities said they seized what they believe were fraudulent passports from Hong Kong, Canada, Jordan and other countries.
Four Jordanian nationals were among the 19 captured, Colombian officials said.
Contradicting the claims of U.S. officials, acting Colombian Attorney General Jorge Armando Otalora insisted that his country's detectives uncovered evidence that the criminal gang may have supplied false documents to members of al-Qaida and Hamas terrorists. |