Colombian officials under investigation

A Colombian court is investigating 14 politicians for allegedly abusing the control of assets confiscated from drug traffickers, officials said. The Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court is examining 14 members of Congress for allegedly awarding land administered by Colombia's National Anti-narcotics Agency DNE, Colombia Reports said Monday. The drug agency is in charge of handling assets seized from drug lords. The court has seized computers from the agency and will determine whether members of Congress were third-party beneficiaries of the alleged corruption. The comptroller general said the agency cost the state at least $2.7 million for falsely reporting the value of a seized ranch in the department of Caldas. The ranch was leased by the drug agency's directors to business owners who used it to raise cattle. Colombia's government is working on a measure that will dismantle the corrupt commodities agency, the report said.