Noriega no longer a P.O.W. — moved to French prison cell

Fresh out of a Miami prison where he spent two decades, former Panamanian dictator Manuel Antonio Noriega, he was sent back behind bars in France on Tuesday to await a new legal battle — this time on charges he laundered cocaine profits by buying luxury apartments in Paris.

Hours after Noriega arrived in Paris following his extradition from the United States, a judge deemed him a flight risk and dispatched him to La Sante, a grim brick prison in southern Paris.
And this time he will not have the comforts of a prisoner of war.
Noriega lost his first battle on French territory — he unsuccessfully pressed a judge to send him home to Panama. If convicted in France, he could face another 10 years in prison, a daunting prospect for the 72-year-old.
Noriega’s French lawyers said they will appeal the decision putting him behind bars and say his detention and transfer are unlawful.
Meanwhile Panama said it respected the US decision to send Noriega to France, but wanted him in Panama. During the three years he battled to be returned to his home country the government showed little enthusiasm to get him back home, where he faces 25 years in jail for two murders, and a new trial, scheduled for July, for the murder of a left wing activist.
Having him on home soil might rattle too many skeletons in too many closets.