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'Rubén Darío Paredes del Río' was a Panamanian army officer and the military ruler of Panama
from 1982 to 1983.
Colonel Paredes came to power following the coup against Colonel Florencio Flores. Paredes' tenure was from March 1982 to August 1983. Although his successor, General Manuel Noriega, disputes it in his memoirs (''America's Prisoner'', ISBN 0517328097), most sources agree that Paredes was formally promoted to the rank of general. Paredes retired from the Panamanian National Guard after making a deal with Noriega that would make him president. However, after his resignation, Noriega reneged on the deal, ending Paredes' political career.
Paredes is retired and lives in Panama City, Panama. His uncle, Rigoberto Paredes, was a member of the National Assembly in the 1980s who was one of Norriega's closest allies. Rigoberto now hosts a talk radio show on Radio BB in Panama City.