Ex-Panama leader Noriega extradited to France
- 14 years ago
The US has extradited former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega to France, clearing the way for him to stand trial there on money laundering charges.
Noriega, who had been held in a federal prison just outside Miami, was placed on an overnight Air France flight to Paris.
His lawyers say he will be turned over to French prosecutors and taken before a judge who will determine whether he should remain in custody pending further action.
Noriega was ousted as Panama's leader and put on trial following a 1989 US military invasion ordered by President George H.W. Bush.
He was brought to Miami and was convicted of drug racketeering and related charges in 1992. France requested his extradition shortly before his US drug trafficking sentence ended in September 2007.
The French claim Noriega laundered some $3 million in drug proceeds by purchasing luxury apartments in Paris. Noriega was convicted in absentia, but France agreed to give him a new trial if he was extradited.
He faces up to 10 years in French prison if convicted.