After living for decades[vague] in Mexico, Cavallo was arrested, extradited to Spain in 2003, and indicted there under the principle of universal jurisdiction, on charges of genocide and terrorism.
[citation needed] After changes[vague] in Argentina, and renewal of prosecution of his case there, Cavallo was extradited in early 2008 to his homeland, tried and convicted there, in 2011, of numerous crimes, and sentenced to life in prison.
Ricardo Miguel Cavallo was a career naval officer at the time the military junta was established in 1976, following a coup d'etat in Argentina.
[1] Cavallo was indicted in Spain in September 2000, in affirmation of the principle of universal jurisdiction, by judge Baltasar Garzon, who had been conducting ongoing investigations into human rights abuses under South American military dictatorships.
[2] In 1985, France awarded him the Ordre national du Mérite, a French order of merit, not knowing his role in tortures and killing.