Bogota - The leftist Colombian rebel Karina, whose famous cruelty put a huge price on her head, has turned herself in to authorities, who were considering Monday whether to pay a reward to informants who told security officials of her whereabouts.

Colombian Justice will now seek to determine whether Nelly Avila Moreno, better known by her alias Karina, is responsible for the murder in 1983 of the father of President Alvaro Uribe and for the kidnapping in 2000 of Oscar Tulio Lizcano, then a congressman.

Several analysts have described the woman as the "bloodiest" member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Karina, who turned herself in Sunday, had a price of some 850,000 dollars on her head.

"She turned herself in because she had been cornered by government troops and she was disappointed, she was going hungry. She did the right thing because the alternative was to end up in a grave, that is why she turned herself in," Colombian Defence Minister Juan Manuel Santos told Caracol Radio on Monday.

Santos added that other members of FARC's Front 47 may choose to demobilize following their commander's move. Karina came forward to authorities in a rural area in the northeastern Colombian municipality of Sonson, in an action where the rebel's daughter acted as a mediator.

Karina "was a rebel who rose through the ranks for her audacity and cruelty. If one looks at her record one realizes that this woman had the guts to carry out any kind of operation, and that kind of person rises very fast in the guerrilla force," the minister noted.

He added that the woman had become a "legend" within FARC for her "cruel" actions and because she always managed to escape the authorities.

Colombian authorities had offered some 850,000 dollars for the capture of Karina. Santos said he thought they would pay the people who collaborated with the secret service in the operation, although they were still assessing the case.

However, Maria del Pilar Hurtado, head of Colombian secret service DAS, said the reward would not be paid as a whole, although part of it would be awarded to the people who facilitated the rebel's surrender. (dpa)