Colombia to hold IRA-linked trio
BOGOTA, Colombia (CNN) -- A judge in Colombia has denied a request by three suspected members of the Irish Republican Army to leave the country pending prosecutors' appeal of their acquittal on charges of training rebels to use explosives.
Defense lawyers for the three men have expressed hope that the appeals process will conclude in one or two months.
The men were acquitted April 26 of teaching Colombia's Marxist FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) rebels in the use of explosives.
However, public prosecutors launched an immediate appeal of the acquittal.
That appeal must be reviewed by a panel of three judges in Bogota's Supreme Court and is the first step in the process of retrying the case.
It could eventually end up in Colombia's Supreme Court, where a panel of nine judges may consider the case.
The men had wanted to leave the country while the appeal was under way, but Thursday a judge ruled against their request.
At their initial trial, the defendants were convicted on a lesser charge of possessing false passports. They were sentenced to time already served, parole and a fine of $6,884 each.
-- From Journalist Toby Muse
