A US court has sentenced Dairo Antonio Úsuga, who was once Colombia’s most-wanted drug lord, to 45 years in prison.

Úsuga, also known as Otoniel, was a notorious cocaine trafficker who was the leader of Colombia’s most powerful gang for more than nine years.

He pleaded guilty in January to running a criminal enterprise and drug smuggling.

During his sentencing on Tuesday, Úsuga said he was sorry for his actions.

“I apologise to the governments of the United States and of Colombia and to the victims of the crimes that I have committed,” the 51-year-old said.

Prosecutors had described him as “the most significant Colombian narcotics trafficker since [the leader of the Medellín cartel] Pablo Escobar” and said he helped ship nearly 100,000 kilograms (220,500 pounds) of cocaine to the US.

The US Drug Enforcement Administration labelled him “one of the most violent and prolific drug traffickers in the world”.

Úsuga was arrested in 2021 and was extradited last year to face drug trafficking charges in the US.

His lawyers sought a sentence of no more than 25 years. They argued that his upbringing in rural poverty, surrounded by guerrilla warfare, led him to a life as a career criminal.

But Judge Dora Irizarry, the US district judge presiding over the case, rejected these arguments, saying her upbringing in a South Bronx housing complex around drugs and violence did not lead her down a similar path.

Úsuga has handed over $216m (£170m) in drug proceeds as part of his guilty plea.

He was the leader of the Gulf Clan cartel in Colombia, which is one of the country’s most powerful and brutal gangs.

The gang, which operates in many provinces and has extensive international connections, is engaged in drug and people smuggling, illegal gold mining and extortion.

It controls many of the routes used to smuggle drugs from Colombia to the US, and as far away as Russia.