By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
 
BOGOTÁ, Colombia, Jan. 12, - Colombia's defense minister acknowledged Wednesday that the government paid bounty hunters to seize a Marxist rebel from neighboring Venezuela, a kidnapping that has soured ties between the countries.

President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela has described the Dec. 13 capture of Rodrigo Granda on the streets of Caracas as nothing less than a kidnapping that could constitute a violation of his country's sovereignty, and demanded Colombia explain what happened.

Colombian officials would not say who the bounty hunters were. There were suggestions that moonlighting Venezuelan police officers and Colombian officers may have played a role, but that has not been confirmed. Defense Minister Jorge Alberto Uribe had insisted for weeks that Mr. Granda, a member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, was captured in the Colombian border city of Cucutá on Dec. 14.

But Mr. Uribe acknowledged Wednesday that Mr. Granda was captured in Caracas and delivered to the police in Cucutá for reward money. "We received information in Bogotá from people, whom we won't identify, offering to bring him to us or provide us with information leading to his arrest," Mr. Uribe said in a radio broadcast. "Reward money was paid in this case."

Asked about the charge by a Venezuelan lawmaker, Luis Tascón, that Colombia paid $1.5 million, Mr. Uribe said: "That is not the sum. The exact figure will not be divulged."

Mr. Uribe again insisted that Colombian agents were not involved in the operation and that it was carried out "without violating Venezuela's sovereignty."

Senator German Vargas, an ally of President Álvaro Uribe, said Mr. Granda was captured in Caracas by "Venezuelan agents."

Venezuela's interior minister, Jesse Chacón, said Tuesday that former or active Venezuelan police officers "could have been" involved. On Tuesday, Chávez administration officials challenged Colombia's assertion that the Colombian police had no hand in the capture, asking whether it was just "a coincidence" that four Colombian officers were detained in an area frequented by the fugitive days before his capture.

The four officers were suspected of taking photographs of military installations in the central city of Maracay, but were later released without being charged.

Mr. Granda is believed to have been responsible for garnering support for the rebels in Latin America and Europe. He faces charges of rebellion and membership of a terrorist organization.

Ties between the neighboring nations have often been testy, with Colombia long accusing the leftist Mr. Chávez of not doing enough to crack down on rebels who smuggle drugs, arms and people across the border.

Mr. Granda's arrest - along with that of another senior rebel commander in Ecuador early last year - has called attention to rebels' connections to neighboring countries, where the rebels are believed to find sanctuary often.

President Lucio Gutiérrez of Ecuador is facing accusations by the opposition and news organizations that he had met with Mr. Granda. On Wednesday, he firmly denied the allegations, but conceded that it was possible the two had crossed paths during conferences either in Ecuador or abroad.

"I want to be very emphatic, very clear: neither as a presidential candidate, nor as president-elect, nor as serving president have I met with representatives" of the Colombian rebel group, he said at a news conference in Quito, Ecuador's capital.