Uribe, who denies any wrongdoing, has pledged to appeal following his conviction for witness tampering and bribery.

In a courtroom ruling that stunned Colombia, a former president Alvaro Uribe has been sentenced to 12 years of house arrest. The charges? Witness tampering and bribery. Historic Judgment Shakes the Nation This marks the first time in Colombia’s modern history that a former head of state has received such a heavy legal punishment.

A Colombian judge on Monday convicted former President Alvaro Uribe of abuse of process and bribery of a public official in a long-running witness tampering case, making him the country’s first ex-president to ever be found guilty at trial.