Ex-OAS Chief Ordered Held in Costa Rica

[Rose Siding]

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- A Costa Rican appeals court judge ordered the former head of the Organization of American States jailed Friday while prosecutors prepare corruption charges against him for allegedly accepting kickbacks when he was the nation's president.

Miguel Angel Rodriguez had been under house arrest for two weeks, but a federal appeals court judge overturned that ruling Friday.

Rodriguez resigned as head of the Washington-based OAS on Oct. 8 and flew to his homeland to answer accusations he received kickbacks from a government contract granted to a French company while he was serving as Costa Rica's president in 1998-2002.

Judge Gabriela Jara ordered police to transport Rodriguez from a modest apartment in eastern San Jose to prison, where he will remain for six months as prosecutors prepare to go to trial, according to a judicial system statement. Later Friday, Rodriguez was escorted from his apartment to a local prison by court agents, police officers and his lawyer.

Jara did not give a reason for reversing the earlier ruling, when a judge criticized prosecutors' case against Rodriguez, saying it was based on inconsistent testimony.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-costa-rica-oas-scandal,0,3411799.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

[arcos]

1. We are all very happy here...

corruption is finally getting investigated, it was about time. In the last months we've seen two former Presidents being sent to jail, and I just hope you Americans will be able to see Cheney in jail too.

No one ever expected we would have two former Presidents in jail, especially the biggest leaders of the party in power right now. There's still hope for you guys!