Costa Rican authorities are concerned about the emergence of a local “mega-cartel” of drug traffickers specializing in the maritime transport of cocaine purchased in Colombia.
Minister of Public Security (Interior) Mario Zamora met on Monday with officials from the United States’ anti-drug services (DEA) “with the aim of improving international support for Costa Rica in the fight against the scourge of drugs”, said the ministry said in a statement.
The Costa Rican authorities are particularly concerned about the arrival on the country’s Pacific coast and in the region bordering Nicaragua of criminal organizations already established in the region of Limon, on the Caribbean coast, where the main commercial port is located. from Costa Rica.
Usually, the drugs arrive on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica on board boats from Colombia to then be transported by road to the Caribbean coast from where they leave hidden in containers destined for Europe and the United States, according to Costa Rican authorities.
Several Costa Ricans were arrested recently by the Colombian Navy who seized nearly two tonnes of marijuana and “a significant quantity of cocaine” en route to the Central American country, the Ministry of Public Security said.
With a total of 656 murders, Costa Rica experienced in 2022 the most violent year in its history. The government, which fears falling prey to criminal gangs like in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, has launched a vast operation to fight organized crime called “Costa Rica Segura Plus”.
06/19/2023 23:35:13 – San José (AFP) – © 2023 AFP