Colombian authorities are seeking to re-arrest a former hit man for the late drug lord Pablo Escobar for violating his parole after he was caught partying with a major drug trafficker.
The chief prosecutor’s office said Saturday that Jhon Jairo Velasquez’s presence at a raucous birthday party for Juan Carlos Mesa constituted a “very serious” offense. The U.S. had been offering a $2 million bounty for Mesa’s capture.
Velasquez, known by his nickname Popeye, was paroled in 2014 after confessing to hundreds of murders and spending 22 years in jail for plotting the murder of a former Colombian presidential candidate.
Since being released Velasquez has gained notoriety as a YouTube star who espouses conservative political views and hate-filled diatribes against leftist rebels and Venezuela's socialist government.
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