Ex-minister’s father faces arrest

Prosecutors ordered the father of the former foreign minister arrested on kidnapping charges following a broad probe that has unearthed links between politicians and illegal paramilitary gangs.

The attorney general’s office ordered Alvaro Araujo Noguera, a prominent former politician, detained on charges he helped kidnap a political rival.

Araujo’s daughter, Maria Consuelo, resigned as foreign minister last week after prosecutors named her father and brother in the investigation.

President Alvaro Uribe is fending off the growing scandal after his former security police chief and eight congressional allies, including Araujo’s son, were arrested on charges they colluded with the militias.