Colombia domestic spy chief probes alleged illegal wiretapping by 'mafia' within [View All]

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Colombia domestic spy chief probes alleged illegal wiretapping by 'mafia' within

By LIBARDO CARDONA | Associated Press Writer
6:42 PM EST, February 21, 2009

BOGOTA (AP) — Colombia's new domestic spy chief said Saturday that he is probing whether agency employees have been eavesdropping on Supreme Court judges, prominent journalists and opposition leaders.

Felipe Munoz, who took over the troubled DAS domestic intelligence agency last month, was reacting to a report by Colombia's leading newsmagazine of widespread interception of phone calls and e-mail by agency officials at least through late last year.

Munoz said he was attempting to establish the existence of a "mafia network that's threatening the security of the state," at a news conference called after the report was published online.

~snip~
Munoz, who answers directly to President Alvaro Uribe, said the wiretapping was not government policy. However, the newsmagazine Semana quoted five unnamed DAS officials in its story and said the executive branch was the primary beneficiary of the intelligence obtained through the illegal eavesdropping.



Read more: http://www.courant.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-lt-colombia-eavesdropping-scandal,0,2059673.story