The Spanish National Court temporarily suspended the extradition of the former head of Venezuela's military intelligence Hugo Carvajal, who went into hiding in Spain in 2019 after US request for his extradition was approved before being arrested in Madrid last week, local newspaper El Mundo reported
MADRID (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th September, 2021) The Spanish National Court temporarily suspended the extradition of the former head of Venezuela's military intelligence Hugo Carvajal, who went into hiding in Spain in 2019 after US request for his extradition was approved before being arrested in Madrid last week, local newspaper El Mundo reported.
On September 10, a spokesman for the National Court told Sputnik that there will be no more hearings on the Carvajal case in Spain, and he will be under arrest while waiting for his extradition to the US.
The court "suspended the extradition" of Carvajal until the Spanish Ministry of Internal Affairs presents a report on Carvajal's request for asylum in 2019, the newspaper reported.
He was initially detained in Madrid in April 2019 at the request of the US. On November 8 of the same year, the National Court ordered for his extradition. Several days later, the police failed to ascertain his whereabouts. In spite of that, in March 2020, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved his extradition.
On September 9, 2021, Carvajal was arrested by the Spanish National Police who were informed of his whereabouts by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which suggested that he could have changed his appearance. According to police sources, Carvajal was living in " total isolation, without going outside or looking out of the window, and was always protected by trusted people."
The US expects Carvajal to provide valuable information on the alleged drug activities of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Carvajal was a trusted adviser to late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez and served as military intelligence chief from 2004-2011 and 2013-2014.
