After being arrested in Colombia in 2021 and extradited to the U.S. on Thursday, an accused Colombian drug kingpin appeared Friday in federal court in Columbus to face a charge alleging he was responsible for trafficking cocaine internationally.
Julio Ernesto Jimenez-Oyaga, 64, landed in Columbus Thursday and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Chelsea Vascura on Friday, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, an agency under the U.S. Department of Justice.
A federal grand jury indicted Jimenez-Oyaga on April 30, 2019, and Colombian authorities arrested him in Medellin at the United States’ request on June 10, 2021, according to the DEA.
Jimenez-Oyaga is charged with one count relating to conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine with the intention that it would be imported into the United States.