Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 9, 2007

Contact: Megan Morrissey, Venezuela Information Office, 202-347-8081 x.602

U.S. Court Frees Self-Proclaimed Terrorist Posada Carriles

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Federal Court judge Kathleen Cardone dismissed charges yesterday against self-proclaimed terrorist Luis Posada Carriles, whose trial for lying to immigration officials was set to begin on Friday. The motion to drop charges and suppress evidence was brought by Posada Carriles, who was released from a New Mexico jail last month on $350,000 bail and allowed to await trial in Miami.

Judge Cardone ruled that a seven count indictment brought by the U.S. government against Posada Carriles, who is also implicated in the deadly bombing of a Cuban airliner in 1976, was based on an unreliable immigration hearing. Tapes and transcripts of a conversation between U.S. immigration officials and Posada Carriles were suppressed after doubts were raised about the accuracy of an interpreter hired by the government.

“International law dictates that terrorists are criminals who can be extradited, but Washington is protecting Posada, a former C.I.A. agent, and thus discrediting their battle against terrorism. Letting well-known terrorists walk free is a blow to principles of justice and humanity,” says Natali Fani of the Venezuela Information Office.

Charges brought against Posada Carriles for making false statements to enter the U.S. are the most recent in a long history of legal violations by the notorious anti-Castro militant. 73 deaths were reported in the 1976 bombing thought to be masterminded by Posada, who escaped from prison in 1985 while facing charges in Venezuela, the country of which he is a citizen. Venezuela's repeated requests for Posada's extradition have been ignored by the U.S. government.

The families of the 73 victims of the 1976 bombing recently gathered in Cuba to protest what is seen as a lack of commitment by the U.S. court system to bring the perpetrator to justice. Others have cited the delays in bringing Posada Carriles to trial as an example a double standard in U.S. counterterrorism efforts.

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Venezuela Information Office
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