Colombia to Pay Ex-Rebel $2.5M for Slaying

Colombia will pay the former FARC rebel who killed his commander last week part of a $2.5 million reward—a move critics say amounts to payment for murder, the BBC reports. Guerrilla Pedro Pablo Montoya shot his boss, then cut off his hand as proof. He will share the money with three others who provided intelligence information.

“We pay for information and other types of collaboration,” said Colombia’s defense minister. Montoya also surrendered his commander's computer, which contained "very valuable information,” the government said. Colombia hopes the reward leads to FARC infighting, and even Montoya has said it will encourage other rebels to follow his example. “The FARC is in trouble,” one Latin American specialist told Bloomberg. (More Colombia stories.)