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US Extradites Panama Ex-President Martinelli

Associated Press
Panama's former President Ricardo Martinelli.

The United States has extradited former Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli to face political espionage and embezzlement charges in his home country.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Monday that it will be for Panamanian courts to determine Martinelli's guilt.

Martinelli had been jailed in Miami since his arrest at his home in June 2017.

The 66-year-old Martinelli was Panama's president from 2009 to 2014. He is accused of embezzlement and illegally monitoring phone calls and other communications.

Nauert says that Martinelli's extradition followed normal procedures established by the countries' bilateral extradition treaty.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.
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