William Saldarriaga

Sentencing was postponed Tuesday for two men convicted of cocaine possession and conspiracy in the drug-trafficking case against deposed Panamanian dictator Manuel A. Noriega. U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler rescheduled the sentencing of real estate agent Brian Alden Davidow, 29, and yacht broker William Saldarriaga, 46, to May 24.

A federal judge sent a tough message to Manuel A. Noriega's co-defendants on Friday when he handed down a 20-year prison sentence to a man who spurned a plea bargain. The message: Cooperating with prosecutors may be the safest route. William Saldarriaga, 47, a Colombian businessman, was found guilty in March of two drug trafficking counts in a 1986 arms-for-cocaine deal that forms a small part of Noriega's broader indictment. The 20-year sentence levied by U.S. District Judge William M.

Prosecutors told U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler in Miami that the U.S. government gave $170,000 and immunity for hundreds of drug deals to a key witness against two of Manuel Noriega's co-defendants. The co-defendants, Brian Davidow and William Saldarriaga, are charged with conspiracy in a 1986 cocaine shipment allegedly protected by the Panamanian dictator. Noriega faces trial in June on charges he accepted $4.6 million in protection money from Colombian cocaine barons.

Sentencing was postponed Tuesday for two men convicted of cocaine possession and conspiracy in the drug-trafficking case against deposed Panamanian dictator Manuel A. Noriega. U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler rescheduled the sentencing of real estate agent Brian Alden Davidow, 29, and yacht broker William Saldarriaga, 46, to May 24.

Two co-defendants of Manuel A. Noriega conspired with the former Panamanian dictator to smuggle a yacht "packed to the gunnels with cocaine" into Miami, prosecutors said Wednesday. But lawyers for Brian Alden Davidow and William Saldarriaga said their clients are victims of political and legal pressures to convict Noriega.

A federal judge sent a tough message to Manuel A. Noriega's co-defendants on Friday when he handed down a 20-year prison sentence to a man who spurned a plea bargain. The message: Cooperating with prosecutors may be the safest route. William Saldarriaga, 47, a Colombian businessman, was found guilty in March of two drug trafficking counts in a 1986 arms-for-cocaine deal that forms a small part of Noriega's broader indictment. The 20-year sentence levied by U.S. District Judge William M.

A defense witness on Thursday denied any involvement in key guns-for-drugs planning meetings with former Panama dictator Manuel A. Noriega and his co-defendants, rebutting a government witness' testimony. Orlando Villarreal Sr. had been listed as a prosecution witness in the trial of William Saldarriaga and Brian Davidow, but he took the stand for the defense.

The drug-smuggling trial of two co-defendants of Manuel A. Noriega opened here Thursday with the surprising news that a chief prosecution witness had been killed hours earlier in a car crash. Ramon A. Navarro, 41, who federal prosecutors said would describe a meeting between the two defendants and Noriega, was pronounced dead at the scene late Wednesday after his car left a road, crashed into a fence and then rammed into a concrete base of an electrical transformer in southwest Miami.

The trial of Gen. Manuel A. Noriega is still four months away, but the name of the deposed Panamanian ruler is expected to be invoked often beginning Tuesday when two co-defendants enter federal court here to face drug smuggling charges. Brian Davidow and William Saldarriaga are accused of smuggling 732 pounds of cocaine into the United States in 1985 or 1986 aboard a Panamanian vessel called the Krill. According to U.S.

Seeking to strengthen their case against deposed Panamanian dictator Manuel A. Noriega, federal prosecutors are stepping up pressure on some of his co-defendants to testify against him about their alleged drug-trafficking conspiracy. The prosecution believes that the testimony of other defendants, who would be allowed to plead guilty to reduced charges, would be an important boost to a case that may be hampered by problems over the disclosure of sensitive national security documents.

Two co-defendants of deposed Panamanian ruler Manuel A. Noriega were found guilty Tuesday of conspiracy and intent to distribute 732 pounds of cocaine they hoped to smuggle into the United States. A federal jury of 10 women and two men found Miami real estate salesman Brian Alden Davidow, 29, and Colombian yacht broker William Saldarriaga, 46, guilty after deliberating for less than five hours.

A defense witness on Thursday denied any involvement in key guns-for-drugs planning meetings with former Panama dictator Manuel A. Noriega and his co-defendants, rebutting a government witness' testimony. Orlando Villarreal Sr. had been listed as a prosecution witness in the trial of William Saldarriaga and Brian Davidow, but he took the stand for the defense.

The drug-smuggling trial of two co-defendants of Manuel A. Noriega opened here Thursday with the surprising news that a chief prosecution witness had been killed hours earlier in a car crash. Ramon A. Navarro, 41, who federal prosecutors said would describe a meeting between the two defendants and Noriega, was pronounced dead at the scene late Wednesday after his car left a road, crashed into a fence and then rammed into a concrete base of an electrical transformer in southwest Miami.

Two co-defendants of Manuel A. Noriega conspired with the former Panamanian dictator to smuggle a yacht "packed to the gunnels with cocaine" into Miami, prosecutors said Wednesday. But lawyers for Brian Alden Davidow and William Saldarriaga said their clients are victims of political and legal pressures to convict Noriega.

Prosecutors told U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler in Miami that the U.S. government gave $170,000 and immunity for hundreds of drug deals to a key witness against two of Manuel Noriega's co-defendants. The co-defendants, Brian Davidow and William Saldarriaga, are charged with conspiracy in a 1986 cocaine shipment allegedly protected by the Panamanian dictator. Noriega faces trial in June on charges he accepted $4.6 million in protection money from Colombian cocaine barons.

The trial of Gen. Manuel A. Noriega is still four months away, but the name of the deposed Panamanian ruler is expected to be invoked often beginning Tuesday when two co-defendants enter federal court here to face drug smuggling charges. Brian Davidow and William Saldarriaga are accused of smuggling 732 pounds of cocaine into the United States in 1985 or 1986 aboard a Panamanian vessel called the Krill. According to U.S.

Two co-defendants of deposed Panamanian ruler Manuel A. Noriega were found guilty Tuesday of conspiracy and intent to distribute 732 pounds of cocaine they hoped to smuggle into the United States. A federal jury of 10 women and two men found Miami real estate salesman Brian Alden Davidow, 29, and Colombian yacht broker William Saldarriaga, 46, guilty after deliberating for less than five hours.

Attorneys for Manuel A. Noriega are privately encouraging a move by five of his co-defendants to obtain a separate, earlier trial on grounds that they should not suffer from the adverse publicity that has surrounded the deposed Panamanian dictator.

Attorneys for Manuel A. Noriega are privately encouraging a move by five of his co-defendants to obtain a separate, earlier trial on grounds that they should not suffer from the adverse publicity that has surrounded the deposed Panamanian dictator.

Seeking to strengthen their case against deposed Panamanian dictator Manuel A. Noriega, federal prosecutors are stepping up pressure on some of his co-defendants to testify against him about their alleged drug-trafficking conspiracy. The prosecution believes that the testimony of other defendants, who would be allowed to plead guilty to reduced charges, would be an important boost to a case that may be hampered by problems over the disclosure of sensitive national security documents.