Prosecutors say the descriptions of his condition are “uncorroborated.”
Luxury Wing
La Picota prison has been hit by repeated scandals in recent years. While some accounts describe grim, overcrowded conditions, Colombian media reports also portray wealthy inmates organizing barbecues, drinking Scotch and receiving visits from prostitutes in what they dubbed the “luxury” wing of the prison.
That appears to be the wing that Isaza Tuzman wants to get moved to. He has enlisted the support of U.S. officials in Colombia to relocate to the “R-Sur” section, according to his lawyers and prosecutors. That unit, reserved mostly for Colombian officials charged with public corruption, boasts home decoration, down comforters, flat-screen televisions, as well as pool tables and a full gym, according to prosecutors.
Colombian prison officials rejected the move because Isaza Tuzman didn’t qualify, prosecutors said. Instead, they offered a transfer to what his lawyers said was a “snitch cell” -- an area for inmates cooperating with authorities that they said would make him vulnerable to harm. He was also offered relocation to Combita, another prison that defense lawyers say is more dangerous and not as accessible to his Bogota counsel. The lawyers said they declined both offers.
Looking haggard and wearing a brown tweed suit and speaking in Spanish, Isaza Tuzman appeared in a courtyard of La Picota in a recent interview with “Los Informantes,” a weekly Colombian television news program.
“Why would a U.S. federal prosecutor arrest me in Colombia when he could have knocked on my door in New York?” Isaza Tuzman said. “I was not hiding in Colombia.”