Colombian court orders seizure of Higuita's house linked to Escobar cartel

A Colombian court has ordered the seizure of a house owned by former national team goalkeeper René Higuita after determining the property was purchased with money from Pablo Escobar's cartel before coming into the player's possession in 1992.

The tribunal's decision concludes a 12-year investigation by Colombia's Public Ministry into the origins of the luxury property located in Medellín, Higuita's hometown in northwestern Colombia. Authorities said the investigation established that the house had been acquired previously by a front person for the Moncada brothers before undergoing successive transfers that eventually placed it in Higuita's name approximately one year before Escobar's death.

According to the Public Ministry, false signatures and various maneuvers were used to conceal the property's origins during the transfer process. Officials said the successive transfers were designed to obscure the connection between the asset and cartel proceeds.

Higuita, known worldwide for his eccentric acrobatics and risky goalkeeper techniques, was a prominent figure in Colombian football during the 1980s and 1990s.