The sentence is the latest in the “Cartel of the Toga” judicial corruption scandal that has rocked the Colombian justice system over the past several years.

José Leonidas Bustos Martínez, a former Justice of the Sala Penal of the Corte Suprema de Justicia, was sentenced to 10 years and three months in prison for his role in the so-called “Cartel de la Toga,” a corruption network made up of judicial officials who received payments in exchange for influencing court decisions in favor of political leaders.

The Sala Especial de Primera Instancia issued ruling SEP 013 on February 20, 2026, finding Bustos Martínez guilty of criminal conspiracy. In addition to the prison sentence, the Court barred him from holding public office for the same period and imposed a fine of approximately $36,200 USD.

José Leonidas Bustos Martinez was a leader of the “Cartel of the Toga” that sold justice to the highest bribe.

The former justice, who twice served as President of the Supreme Court, was acquitted of a separate charge of abuse of public office related to influence peddling.

The ruling states that no alternative sentencing measures, such as suspended sentence or house arrest, will be granted, meaning Bustos Martínez must serve his sentence in a Colombian correctional facility to be designated by the Instituto Nacional Penitenciario y Carcelario (INPEC).

The Court also ordered the issuance of an arrest warrant and requested an Interpol Red Notice, as Bustos Martínez has resided in Canada since 2019.

According to the Comisión de la Verdad de Colombia (Truth Commission), the so-called “Cartel de la Toga” was a corruption scheme operating since 2010 through which “Colombia’s justice system was infiltrated through the purchase of judicial rulings.” The Commission stated that “officials involved diverted investigations, delayed proceedings, misused privileged information, altered evidence and discredited witnesses in order to favor those who paid for judicial decisions that appeared lawful.”

Investigations lead by the Commission determined that the scheme sought to illegally interfere in cases against high-level political leaders in exchange for substantial sums of money, including obstructing arrest warrants and preventing pretrial detention measures.

Bustos Martinez’s conviction adds to more than 50 arrests and extraditions related to the case since 2017, including sentences against former judicial officials, former members of Congress, former mayors and former governors from various regions of Colombia.

Headline photo:In 2008 then President Álvaro Uribe swore in José Leonidas Bustos Martínez as magistrate of the Criminal Cassation (Appeals) Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice, during a ceremony held Tuesday, April 1st, in the Gobelinos Hall of the presidential palace (photo: Presidential Archives of Colombia)

Colombian authorities have rescued 17 minors belonging to Lev Tahor, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish sect widely accused across several countries of child abuse, forced marriage, kidnapping and extreme coercive control. The operation — carried out by Migración Colombia in coordination with the Army’s Gaula Militar — was triggered by international alerts and concerns that the group may have been attempting to establish a new enclave inside Colombia.

Officials intervened in a hotel in the northern municipality of Yarumal after receiving intelligence reports about the presence of foreign minors linked to Lev Tahor. The hotel operation allowed officers to verify the identity and migration status of 26 people, including 17 children from the United States, Guatemala, Canada and other countries. Five of the minors had active Interpol “yellow notices,” issued when a child is reported missing or potentially at risk of crimes such as trafficking or kidnapping.

Authorities said that seven families associated with the sect had arrived in Colombia on October 22 and 23 on flights from New York City. Sister agencies abroad had previously warned Colombian counterparts about possible movements of Lev Tahor members due to ongoing investigations in other jurisdictions. Some members of the group’s leadership have prior convictions in the United States for kidnapping and the sexual exploitation of minors. There are also long-standing allegations from Guatemala of enforced pregnancies, mistreatment of minors and rape inside the community.

According to Colombian investigators, one working hypothesis is that the families may have been seeking to establish a new settlement in rural Colombia. The group has a history of sudden, secretive migrations to avoid scrutiny from foreign governments. Lev Tahor communities, estimated at around 50 families worldwide, have lived in the United States, Canada, Guatemala and Mexico, often leaving abruptly when law-enforcement pressure escalates.

Authorities emphasized that the primary goal of the operation was to protect the children and clarify their situation. The minors were transported to Migración Colombia’s Service Center in Medellín, where they spent the night under continuous supervision. Officials from the Colombian Family Welfare Institute (ICBF), child-protection attorneys and multidisciplinary teams of psychologists, social workers and medical professionals were deployed to guarantee a comprehensive assessment of the children’s well-being.

“All of our actions were guided by an absolute commitment to safeguard the rights of these boys, girls and adolescents,” said Gloria Esperanza Arriero, Director General of Migración Colombia. “This was a preventative and coordinated intervention. Our priority is to determine whether these minors were victims of abuse, coercion, or human trafficking under the guise of religious activity.”

Local and international investigators are now examining evidence to determine whether any of the minors were taken from their home countries illegally. Some preliminary findings suggest that at least a few of the children may have been transported across borders without full parental consent or in violation of court orders, raising the possibility of a trafficking scheme.

The Lev Tahor sect – founded in the 1980s – is known for its rigid, isolationist doctrine and its strict dress codes for women, who are required to wear black, head-to-toe garments. Members live in tightly controlled communities overseen by male leaders and bound by strict obedience norms. Over the past decade, authorities in Canada, the United States, Guatemala and Mexico have repeatedly intervened amid accusations of forced underage marriages, psychological abuse and extreme discipline practices.

In December 2024, Guatemalan authorities rescued 160 minors from a Lev Tahor-occupied farm after receiving reports of forced pregnancies and sexual violence. A year earlier, Mexican police dismantled a compound near the Guatemalan border, removing women and children and arresting at least one leader. And in 2021, two senior members of the group were convicted in New York for kidnapping children and attempting to force a 14-year-old girl back into an illegal sexual relationship with an adult man.

Colombian authorities say they are now collaborating with Interpol, foreign embassies, child-protection agencies, the Attorney General’s Office and the Gaula Militar to fully determine the legal status of the rescued minors, ensure they are not returned to dangerous environments and rule out any signs of human trafficking.

“Protection comes first,” Migración Colombia said in a statement. “We will use every institutional mechanism available to guarantee the safety of these children.”