US extradites former Panamanian President to France

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US extradites former Panamanian President to France

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27 April,2010 08:01 am

Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega was extradited on Monday to France where he has been convicted on money laundering charges, according to US law enforcement and airport officials.The former army general and one-time CIA informant, now 76 years old, was taken from his jail cell and put on board an Air France flight in Miami due to arrive in Paris on Tuesday morning. Noriega, who finished his US prison sentence for drug trafficking two years ago, has remained in a Florida prison while fighting his extradition to France. His attorneys argue that as a prisoner of war he must be sent back to Panama. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed the extradition order earlier on Monday, said State Department spokesman Andy Laine. Noriega was convicted in absentia in France of laundering cocaine profits through French banks and using the money to buy three luxury apartments. However, the former Panamanian strongman can seek a new trial once he arrives in France. He had challenged his extradition to the US Supreme Court, but the highest court let stand a ruling by a federal appeals court that the US government can legally send Noriega to France without violating his rights as a prisoner of war.