Colombia trial adjourned after witness no-show

THE trial of three alleged IRA men accused of training Colombian FARC rebels has been adjourned until February after two key witnesses refused to show up because they feared for their lives.

One of the men, Giovanni Rodriquez, wrote to the court and said he would only give evidence if the army flew him to Bogota, and said that he would never travel by land because he feared an ambush.

The judge in the trial agreed the man was under serious risk and has ordered he be taken under maximum security from the prison where he is serving time for FARC-related crimes. The other man, John Alexander, cannot be traced by police, despite being under the Colombian witness protection programme.