BOGOTA, Colombia: A reporter for a state-controlled television network in Venezuela was released Tuesday from a Colombian jail, almost two months after his arrest for allegedly plotting a series of bomb attacks with leftist rebels, authorities said.
Freddy Munoz, a reporter for the Telesur network majority controlled by the Venezuelan government of President Hugo Chavez, was arrested Nov. 19 as part of an investigation into a series of rebel bombings against an electrical grid along the Caribbean coast in 2002.
No one was killed in the attacks, and Munoz repeatedly asserted his innocence.
Several media watchdog groups condemned Munoz's detention. The Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Without Borders called the arrest "an abuse of power, an arbitrary measure."
"I'm very thankful for the support in these 50 days of captivity of so many friends, and the solidarity of my colleagues," Munoz told Caracol Radio shortly after his release.
Although Munoz was never formally charged with terrorism, prosecutors claimed three former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, Latin America's oldest rebel group, testified that he helped carry out the bombings.
Munoz will likely be prevented from leaving the country while he remains linked to the investigation, Cristina Diaz, a spokeswoman for the chief federal prosecutor, told The Associated Press. She did not provide further details about why prosecutors decided to release Munoz.
Munoz's lawyer, Tito Gaitan, told Caracol Radio that the evidence against his client "didn't have the strength or credibility to merit his continued imprisonment."
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro said last month the case was an attempt to "silence Munoz's voice."
The crime of terrorism and rebellion carry prison sentence of up to 15 years in Colombia.
The FARC has been trying to overthrow Colombia's government for more than four decades.
