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U.S. Congressmen urge Trump administration to sanction businessmen, one of them linked to Costa Rican TV channel

By A.M. Costa Rica wire services

A report made by U.S. Rep. Albio Sires, ranking member of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, and a bipartisan group of members of Congress have urged the Trump Administration to use its authority under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to sanction six individuals from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico for their involvement in corruption and organized crime.

Sires joined the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Eliot Engel (D-NY); chairwoman emeritus of the committee, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL); Republican co-chairman of the Central America Caucus, David Valadao (R-CA) and Democratic co-chairwoman of the Central America Caucus, Norma Torres (D-CA), in sending a letter to the administration urging action.

The letter recommends that the departments of State and Treasury determine whether the following six individuals meet the criteria to be held accountable under the Global Magnitsky Act: José Aquiles Enrique Rais López, José Luis Merino, Gustavo Adolfo Alejos Cambara, Luis Alberto Mendizábal Barrutia, Remigio Angel Gonzalez, and Oscar Ramón Nájera.

A section of the Global Magnitsky Act requires the submission of reports to Congress with relevant updates on the list of sanctioned individuals and entities, as well as responses to congressional requests for specific sanctions investigations pursuant to the law.

In their letter, the members state, “As the United States continues to support efforts in the Northern Triangle region of Central America to fight corruption and organized crime, we ask you to determine whether the following individuals meet the criteria to be held accountable under the Act . . . We look forward to a continued dialogue with the administration to support the robust implementation of the Global Magnitsky Law and efforts by the United States to combat corruption and human rights abuses in the Northern Triangle region of Central America and around the globe.”

To reach Sires press release click here

The Magnitsky Global Law passed in 2016 and requires the United States imposes economic sanctions on citizens of any country in the world who have committed acts of corruption and violations of human rights in their countries.

It was inspired by the Magnitsky Act of 2012 which only sanctioned Russian officials and the government of Vladimir Putin, accusing that country and government of having been involved in the death of Sergei Magnitsky in a prison in Moscow in 2009.

In 2008, the Magnitsky auditor discovered a network of tax fraud and corruption that involved 23 companies, the Kremlin, and people close to the Putin government.

The total amount indicated in the report was $230 million. When the complaint was filed, he was detained, although without charges.

He was treated violently and died under mysterious circumstances a few days before his alleged release.

Researchers from the United Nations found that "the inhumane conditions of detention, the isolation of his family, the lack of regular access to his lawyers and the intentional refusal to provide him with adequate medical assistance had the consequence of causing him great pain and suffering, and finally death."

Posthumously, the accountant was tried and considered guilty by Russian courts.

Why are these prominent businessman being accused by the US Congress? The Argentine newscast Infobae, published an investigation of the main facts that could link the men with illegal activities.

The members of Congress describe the possible criminal actions of individuals, mostly linked to corruption and transnational crime.

1- Remigio Ángel González
(Ángel González, born in Mexico)

This media entrepreneur appears in the Panama Papers as a shareholder of the offshore company Global Holding Properties, the principal of the Albavisión media conglomerate. The Inter-American Press Association has registered that Gonzalez has business in 11 Latin American countries, in which he has 35 television channels (including La Red in Chile, ATV in Peru, SNT in Paraguay and Channel 9 in Argentina), 114 radio stations, two newspapers and several cinemas.

In their presentation before the government, the U.S. congressmen pointed out that Gonzalez has lived in Miami since 1987, where he has managed to "avoid laws that prohibit monopolies or restrict foreign ownership of the media through ghost companies run by relatives, friends and representatives." The Inter-American Press Association warned about the impact of the monopoly on the right to information.

In Guatemala the properties are in the name of his wife, Alba Elvira Lorenzana Cardona, a Guatemalan national, who was tried in 2016 for the Cooptation of the State case and sought by Interpol involving the scheme to finance the Perez Molina and Baldetti campaign and then obtain benefits in state contracts, obtained funds through a network of companies run by the candidate and then vice president of Guatemala. No company had real commercial activity: they were "channels for money that were secretly delivered by representatives of Radiotelevisión Guatemala (Channel 3) and Televisiete (Channel 7), owned by González."

The sanctions that U.S. congressmen request include cancellation of visas and freezing of assets.

That is how the Patriot Party reached some $2.3 million that were not declared before the Superior Electoral Tribunal and were used to purchase new cars. "In return, González's television companies allegedly benefited from million-dollar publicity contracts," which began with the assumption of Pérez Molina: some $26 million, the prosecutor's office estimated, or 69 percent of all official television advertising.

González began his career selling Mexican soap operas in 1971. Two years later he settled in Guatemala with his first wife, sister of Alfonso Portillo's minister of communication and president of the Congress in the early 2000s, Luis Armando Rabbé Tejada, who created false posts in Congress to earn money. Rabbé, in turn, married a sister of Gonzalez.

In 1981 González bought channels 3 and 7 in Guatemala, in partnership with two Cuban exiles. One of them, Gerardo Sampedro, was arrested in Miami in 1995 for drug trafficking and collaboration with the Cali Cartel. González expanded its media operations to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Chile and Argentina, among other countries; in 2008 it created the Albavisión conglomerate.

In 1995, he was responsible for the creation of Repretel (owner of channels 6 and 11 in Costa Rica), and added channel 4 in 2000 in the country as well. He also created Central de Radios, acquiring multiple radio frequencies of different formats. He has been criticized for suspicions of wanting to manage a media monopoly in Costa Rica, both on radio and television.

Representaciones Televisivas, better known by its shorter name Repretel, is a television network in Costa Rica. Now Repretel has channels 2, 4, 6, 11 and 46. It also has 11 radio stations, all branded as Central de Radios.

2- José Aquiles Enrique Rais López
(Enrique Rais, El Salvador)

This prominent Salvadoran businessman was designated "a priority target of the Drug Control Administration and an international investigative subject because of his ties to organized crime groups, ghost companies, cartels and corrupt politicians recently identified in the drug scandal. Panama Papers," according to the 19th Judicial Circuit of Florida.

In that same complaint for probable cause, an official argued that "the aircraft belonging to Rais show extensive evidence of drug trafficking activities, including modified compartments, disproportionately high costs for premium aeronautical resources to land in remote locations and the use of ghost companies to register these aircraft, one of which was monitored by other activities related to drugs."

Rais was arrested on Aug. 22, 2016 in El Salvador for active bribery, procedural fraud and ideological falsehood, in different situations related to his business. On that occasion, the former attorney general of that country, Luis Martínez, his deputy, Julio Arriaza, and a nephew and two lawyers of Rais were also arrested. They accused him of obstructing judicial investigations and adulterating evidence to weaken the cases against him and improve his position in cases against his adversaries.

"The heart of the case is a multi-million dollar dispute linked to the garbage company of Rais, Mides, which deals with the management of most of the solid waste in El Salvador," the congressmen reported.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

Official request from Engel & Ros-Lehtinen, in August 2nd.

But on Aug, 28, 2016 Justice of the Peace Évelyn Jiménez freed Rais - not considering him in flight - despite his having dual citizenship with Switzerland, a country with which the Salvadoran state has no extradition agreement. When this ruling was revoked, Rais had already left the country, presumably for Switzerland. Since February 2018, Interpol has been trying to capture him.

3- José Luis Merino
(El Salvador)

This senior member of the Farabundo Martí Front for National Liberation is currently deputy minister of foreign affairs of El Salvador. He and Rais are co-owners of the Mides garbage company.

It is believed that he has links with transnational organizations. In 2008, after the death of the commander of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, Raúl Reyes, the security officers of that country found e-mails on his laptop that linked Merino to a network of arms traffickers.

In 2017, Sires asked the U.S. Treasury Department to investigate Merino's banking activities in the United States, given his long association with international mafia networks under investigation for cocaine trafficking and money laundering.

4- Gustavo Adolfo Alejos Cambara
(Gustavo Alejos, Guatemala)

The former secretary of the presidency of Álvaro Colom was prosecuted in Guatemala for illicit association, active bribery and influence peddling. "He is an entrepreneur who used political connections to obtain millions of dollars in state contracts," summarized the congressmen and recalled the causes that began in 2015 and 2016. Alejos has also been a contributor to different political groups in Guatemala: the Partido de Advanced National, the Great National Alliance, the National Unity of Hope and the Partido Patriota.

The Guatemalan prosecutor's office accused him of leading a corruption network in the supply of medicines to the Guatemalan Social Security Institute with the complicity of internal officials who paid bribes, along with Alejandro Enrique Toledo Paz and Juan Pablo Muralles Morán, also suppliers of the institute. Thus, they inflated the sale of a medicine or a service to favor their companies, according to the allegation.

Until 2014 Alejos worked for the pharmacological Agency J.I. Cohen, which for 30 years was the main provider of the Guatemalan state. Since then Alejos constituted different companies through front men (Droguería Colon, Pharmaceutical Evolution and Sabiapharma), with whom he put together the corruption scheme, the congressional letter said.

Drug trafficking, ghost companies, bribes to officials, arranged bids, organized crime and violence are among the reasons for requesting the application of the Magnitsky Global Law in this case, the congressional request said.

After processing in 2015 for the case that in Central America is known as Health Negotiators, it was discovered that he was the main architect of the corruption network, the letter said. A year later the prosecution implicated Alejos in a network for the illegal financing of the 2011 election campaigns of former president Otto Pérez Molina and his vice-president Roxanna Baldetti (who had resigned in 2015 for the allegations of massive corruption) in exchange for "preferential treatment to win state contracts," according to the information of the congressmen. This is the Cooptation of the State case.

In 2018 Alejos was implicated in another corruption case, the Transurbano bus contract in Guatemala City. The third part of the $35 million that the Colom government paid to a company that obtained the contract in a questionable tender was attributed to equipment that was never bought. As Colom's secretary, Alejos is accused of having received some of those funds. After the revocation of his house arrest, in April, another individual, Mariscal Zavala was detained awaiting trial.

5- Luis Alberto Mendizábal Barrutia
(Guatemala)

This intelligence expert was involved in several high profile operations, according to documents obtained by InSight Crime, including the coup attempt against president Vinicio Cerezo Arévalo. In his boutique Emilio, the far-right Salvadoran party ARENA was formed and it is believed that the death squads of the National Liberation Movement also met there.

One of Mendizábal's most well-known operations was the recording and distribution of the video that appeared after the death of Guatemalan lawyer Rodrigo Rosenberg in 2009. In the video (a staging by Rosenberg himself, who organized his own murder according to subsequent investigations) the lawyer accused the administration of Colom, and in particular Gustavo Alejos, of his death.

Mendizábal participated in a clandestine security group, Los Oficiales de la Montaña, in the 80s, and in the creation of La Oficinita, "a hidden security apparatus that coordinated illegal actions between military intelligence and the president's office in the decade of the 1990s." In the report of the congressmen, "It is also believed that Mendizábal participated in the Anti-kidnapping Command, established by General Marco Tulio Espinoza, a group accused of serious violations of human rights."

The Public Ministry of Guatemala showed him to be involved in 2015 in a fraud network, La Línea, which had operated within the Customs and Tax Administration since 2011 and whose bribes were coordinated at the Emilio boutique. "The investigations also revealed that Mendizábal was behind the bribes paid to Judge Marta Sierra de Stalling in exchange for substitute measures for some of the defendants involved in the La Línea case," the annex to the letter to Trump added. In that case, president Pérez Molina and Vice Baldetti, among other officials, were also involved.

6- Oscar Ramón Nájera
(Honduras)

The landowner of the Bajo Aguán area has been in the Congress of Honduras for 27 years, where he represents the National Party. U.S. representatives allude to his links to drug trafficking from the statements of Los Cachiros leader Devis Leonel Rivera Madariaga, who told a New York District Court that Najera collaborated with that cartel.

Rivera said that in 2013 Deputy Nájera and two others participated in a meeting with Los Cachiros, "in connection with a dispute over seized properties." The drug traffickers paid the three for a list of accounts and properties that the Administrative Office of Seized Assets planned to seize.

For that reason, in addition, the Attorney General's Office and the Mission to Support the Fight against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras of the Organization of American States announced that they would investigate Nájera.

The congressmen cited an investigation of the ContraCorriente site, which includes Nájera among its sources, in which it is argued that it could have been the link between Los Cachiros and the governments of Manuel Zelaya, Roberto Micheletti and Porfirio Lobo.

The complete investigation can be read in Infobae.

.....

Business confidence remains stagnant

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

Entrepreneurial confidence is stagnant according to the latest data from the most recent quarterly business survey called Pulso Empresarial or business pulse.

The survey has been created by the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of the Business Sector since 1998.

The Pulso Empresarial survey is a panel study, that is, it is the same group of companies that make up the sample and have agreed to participate in the study every three months.

The present survey was made by telephone to 389 businessmen in the period between July 16 and 27 this year. The population sampled included presidents, general managers and/or financial managers of the companies.

The sample has a maximum error of 3 percent and a confidence level of 95 percent.

Entrepreneurs are not very optimistic about the development of their businesses in the coming months, since, when comparing the current business confidence indicator (6.2 points) with that of a year ago (6.4 points), it is observed that it is at the same level as 12 months ago.

The expectations of the business sector are clouded by the government’s complicated fiscal situation facing the country, the lack of clear proposals to reactivate the economy and how to recover the competitiveness of the country.

For that reason the chamber has presented proposals on the subject, as well as the National Strategy for Sustainable Companies.

In the study, entrepreneurs were asked if they considered this as a good time to make investments and 57 percent of them ruled out that possibility. Among the main obstacles to increased investments they mentioned: the excess of procedures (25 percent), high rates of interest (16 percent), little access to financing (13 percent), citizen insecurity (11 percent), insufficient infrastructure (9 percent), legal insecurity (8 percent) and economic stability (7 percent).

"Given the current situation, it is clear that the private sector is cautious and concerned, especially when we have growth rates, which according to the projection of the Central Bank will reach 3.2 percent and a stagnant economy does not produce revenue for companies, neither for the people, nor for the treasury," said the president of the chamber, Gonzalo Delgado.

The study also revealed that 88 percent of the entrepreneurs consider that starting a business in Costa Rica is very difficult or difficult, and 81percent of those consulted added that it is expensive or very expensive to meet all the requirements the state requests when opening a new business.

Added to this issue, 78 percent of employers claim that the government does not have a plan to recover the country's competitiveness, while 59 percent of them say that the government is not taking the appropriate measures to reactivate the national economy.

Two of the most important issues show very negative results: tax reform and education of young people to be inserted into the labor market.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

Entrepreneurs are not very optimistic about the development
of their businesses in the coming months.

1- Tax Reform.

On the subject of tax reform, 7 out of 10 employers consider that the government should have a single salary policy for all government workers.

In addition, 84 percent of employers are of the opinion that the approval of new taxes will be insufficient to fix the fiscal situation of the country.

Employers were also asked to respond if they were for or against the following statements:

· Only with measures of containment of public expenditure can the fiscal situation of the country be adjusted: 65 percent against, while 35 percent in favor.

· Establish fiscal rules will ensure that public spending does not soar in the future: 62 percent in favor, while 38 percent against.

2- Education
Another important issue for the productive sector is having well-trained young people to insert into the labor market.

In this survey, employers rated the level of education from primary school to university studies with an average grade of 7.

Only 36 percent of those interviewed consider that the educational system (formal and technical) prepares young people for appropriate insertion into the labor market, while 57 percent think otherwise.

With this scenario, 72 percent of employers said that their companies have no connection with any educational institution, which contrasts with an educational system which gives 8 percent of GDP but has lower results than other countries in the area.

On the subject of future hiring, for the next six months the productive sector dismissed the idea of increasing their payrolls. This is confirmed by 75 percent of the interviewees, but 82 percent of the respondents say there will be no layoffs.

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Published Thursday, August 30, 2018 - Third news page

....

U.N. rights office calls for action in Nicaragua

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

A new report from the U.N. human rights office has detailed what it describes as numerous violations carried out by the Nicaraguan government after mass protests erupted in mid-April over planned social security reforms.

“The violence and impunity of these past four months have exposed the fragility of the country’s institutions and the rule of law, and created a climate of fear and mistrust,” said the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.

The report covers the period from when protests began April 18 up to Aug. 18.

The disproportionate use of force by police, sometimes resulting in extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, widespread arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment, and rights violations to freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful assembly have all been cited in the report.

The report notes that in the initial stage, the police and pro-government armed elements responded harshly to protests.

During the clean-up stage, from mid-June to mid-July, they forcibly dismantled roadblocks and barricades.

According to information obtained, armed elements often acted in coordination with high-level state authorities and the National Police, the report said.

“The government no longer denies the existence of pro-government armed elements, [and] it condones their actions and allows them to operate with impunity,” the report said.

Most of the violence took place from mid-April to mid-July and has reportedly left some 300 people dead and 2,000 others injured, mostly men under 30, including university students and young professionals.

The report also noted that 22 police officers were killed.

In the current stage, demonstrators and so-called government opponents are being persecuted and criminalized. As of Aug. 18, information indicates that at least 300 protesters are being prosecuted on charges that include terrorism and organized crime. These trials have serious flaws and do not observe due process or impartiality of the courts, the report said.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

In the current stage, demonstrators and so-called government opponents are being persecuted and criminalized.

Civil servants, including teachers and doctors, have been dismissed, and the authorities have been increasingly stigmatizing and discrediting protesters and human rights defenders as “terrorists” or “coup-mongers,” it added.

“Rather than recognizing responsibility for any wrongdoing during the crisis, the government has placed the blame on social and opposition leaders for what they have termed ‘coup-related violence,’” the report noted.

The report calls on the government to immediately end the harassment, intimidation and criminalization and to disarm pro-government elements, halt all unlawful arrests and release all those arbitrarily detained.

Zeid urged the U.N. Human Rights Council and the international community “to take concrete action to prevent the current crisis from descending into deeper social and political turmoil.”

“Any such action should aim to ensure full accountability for human rights violations and abuses, enable victims to have effective access to justice and appropriate remedies, including reparations and the right to know the truth,” said the high commissioner.

Published Thursday, August 30, 2018 - Fourth news page

Fishermen end protests

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

Representatives of the fishing sector and government representatives reached a series of agreements that allowed the protest movement to be ended in Puntarenas and other coastal areas.

The dialogue reached consensus on topics such as financing for the purchase of beacons (for satellite location), autonomy studies for 40-mile fleets and research permits for sustainable shrimp fishing, among others.

The meeting began after 10 p.m. Tuesday and lasted until 2 a.m. Wednesday.

As a condition to engaging in negotiations, the minister of the Presidency, Rodolfo Piza Rocafort, demanded that the demonstrators clear the roads to allow the movement of hundreds of drivers who were trapped by the protests.

Movement leaders claimed to have lost control of the crowd that kept the streets blocked.

The main roads blocked for almost 12 hours were in Puntarenas, Golfito and Quepos.

Reports indicated that there were more than two thousand people who demanded government support to develop the fishing activity in their areas.

Among the demands of the fishermen are:

* The reactivation of the fishing of shrimp and shark, mainly for export.

* Exempt the fishing sector from electronic invoicing.

* Differentiated social insurance for fishermen.

* Reactivation of some of the docks located in Portete de Limón.

* Do not allow more licenses to catch tuna with new fishing systems.

* Authorization for reactivate trawling.

* Financing for the purchase of beacons (geolocators) for medium-scale vessels.

The negotiations began after the protesters left the streets and allowed the passage of vehicles.

Piza's presence was demanded by the demonstrators in the morning hours. The minister of Agriculture, Renato Alvarado Rivera, and the vice minister of the Presidency, Juan Alfaro López, also participated in the negotiations.

Technical staff from institutions such as Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and the Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture also participated.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

Reports indicated that there were more than two thousand people who demanded government support to develop the fishing activity in their areas.

The government representatives and the protesters worked for hours to determine the feasibility of fishermen's requests.

Alvarado called for keeping the door to dialogue open and offered his collaboration in the search for solutions to his proposals.

"We are here looking for the opportunity to sit down to talk. This country is characterized because the sectors and the government have always sat down to negotiate. There are important things to build," said Alvarado.

He reaffirmed the consent to dialogue and to the discussion of the major issues.

"We understand that the subject of fishing is complicated, complex. But only through dialogue and the participation of all sectors can we build a more organized and creative vision to solve the problems we have as a country," Alvarado said.

The response to the fishermen includes actions and deadlines to comply with some of the requests.

"This administration reiterates that solutions are found through spaces for dialogue. Peaceful demonstrations are always a right of the people. To solve the problems it is necessary to find the right spaces and not on the streets," said Alfaro.

In the next few hours, the government was to make a statement with the result of the conversions and the achievements of both sides.

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Stop in for a visit and enjoy the view!

Visit our Web site at: www.HiddenGardenArt.com
Contact us by email: info@HiddenGardenArt.com  
Find us on Trip Advisor, Facebook, Twitter, Moon Travel Guides & Frommer's 

Gallery hours: Tuesdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
C.R. phone: 8386-6872 / 2667-0592
U.S. phone: 702-953-7073 

Code:9371-080618

9214-8/2/17

U.S. Income Tax Services
(paid category)

U.S. Income Tax Services
Marlene B. Summers
Tax Accountant

Let’s discuss your tax situation.

The IRS has become more aggressive and if you have not filed, you must do so.

However, there are solutions to problems and your situation may be better than you think.

If your filing is not up to date, Streamlined Filing can be used with no penalties.

Including disclosure of foreign corporations to avoid serious problems.

If tax payment is holding you back, the IRS has options to solve payment problems.

You can file current or past due FBARs without payment to meet IRS requirements.

If you have yet to file, do it now as there is still time.

Over 20 years in Costa Rica
and Silicon Valley.
Competitive rates.

Phone (506) 2289-6590 ; Cell (506) 8750-2316
Email: marlene.summers@gmail.com

Code:9186-6/30/17

Household Furnishings

(paid category)

Fine Furniture of Sarchi
All our handcrafted products are made in Sarchi with pride and quality by artisans who are dedicated to designing, crafting, and delivering our furniture to you. Please visit our website and send us a picture and specifications of what YOU like, or just send us pictures from anywhere you wish. We will quote you right back with a more than competitive price and an on-time delivery date. Delivery and set up available throughout Costa Rica. We have different Costa Rican woods from which you may choose.
www.FineFurnitureOfSarchi.com
Contact information:
Adolfo's Cell: +506-8831-4306
E-mail: Info@FineFurnitureOfSarchi.com
or FineFurnitureOfSarchi@gmail.com

Shipping services
(paid category)

Moving to Costa Rica or Back to the U.S.?

10 Years of Happy Clients
Canadian English or Spanish Spoken
Excellent Service, Competitive Prices
Call (772) 361-1050
Email: shippingcostarica@gmail.com
Our Web: http://shippingcostarica.com
Free Ebook: How To Import to Costa Rica HERE!

Psychotherapy
(paid category)

Dr. Lucinda Gray
California Licensed
Psychologist
International Practice

Code:9348-090618

U.S. Income Tax Services
(paid category)


James Brohl, C.P.A. & M.B.A. US Income Tax, U.S. GAAP Accounting & Business Consulting n Specializing in all matters of concern to U.S. taxpayers residing abroad including: n
• IRS filing requirements of foreign income tax exclusion (up to $102,100 for 2017). • Past-due tax returns: Taxpayers filing before an IRS notice do not face criminal sanctions. • Reporting foreign financial assets: FBAR and foreign corporations. • Up-to-date FATCA news. • All US Tax return preparation: individual, business, estate and trust. • eFile returns: secure with faster refunds. • Business consulting to facilitate working in Costa Rica.
Telephone 8305-3149 or 2256-8620 E-mail jrtb_1999@yahoo.com

Published Thursday, August 30, 2018 - Fifth news page

Giant toucans welcome travelers at Juan Santamaría Airport

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

The Juan Santamaría International Airport is getting ready to show the Toucan Fest, an exhibition of toucan sculptures that will be placed along the international terminal.

For this festival, the airport administrator asked national artists, either emerging or consolidated, to display their talent in toucan-centered works. The work of these artists will be seen by the nearly 5 million passengers a year who travel through the main airport in Costa Rica.

The Toucan Fest is part of the campaign that gives sense of place to the airport and that, in its fourth year, opens the doors for the national artistic sector.

"The last three hours of a passenger's stay in Costa Rica are at the airport, and as promoters of the image of the country we discovered that we can take advantage of that time to generate more experiences for those who visit us. The best way to do it is through the exhibition of national art and its manifestations of our culture, biodiversity and all those reasons that appeal to tourists to visit us again," said Lucía Gutiérrez, commercial manager of AERIS Costa Rica, the airport operator.

The eight toucan sculptures are made of fiberglass and have a base height of two meters by one meter in width.

The sculptures represent tropical colors, typical elements of Costa Rica, and originality of the design.

The designs are varied. Some have indigenous prints, exotic animals, volcanoes, forests, beaches, the Guaria morada plant and even typical carretas are represented between the wings and the beaks that served as a canvas on which to paint things that identify Costa Rica as a country.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

The eight toucan sculptures are made of fiberglass and
have a base height of two meters by one meter in width.

Among the artist are Rubén Vargas, a Heredia painter, Salvador Ávalo, a Nicaraguan who arrived in the country 29 years ago, and Heidy Jiménez, an engraving expert who said she was inspired by the indigenous culture and the stone engravings that she learned when she studied history.

Toucan Fest is open to the public at the main entry of the international airport.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Costa Rica: Remarkable Tales from Our Super Vacation Spot
By the staff and contributors at A.M. Costa Rica & James J. Brodell
A.M. Costa Rica celebrates its 16th anniversary with a compilation of classic news reports geared to the needs of foreigners living here and those elsewhere with personal or business interests in this vacation paradise.
Read a sample and purchase the book Click Here

New World Meditation: Focusing Mindfulness Healing Awakening
By Lucinda Gray Ph.D.
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Bohemian Road Trip
By Paul Furlong
"Makin' it Real--a Road Trip," is basically three themes running concurrently: A motorcycle racer who betrays himself by quitting... who looks at his watch one day... and realizes he's thirty now... and if he was going to be a star, he would be by now. So he quits racing and takes a year long trip to see who else might be in his reflection.
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Writing a will ? Expecting an inheritance?
Most estate planning books focus on legal formalities. Pa$$ing On: What’s Fair in Family Inheritance? delves deeper, helping you avoid emotional minefields and create a will that’s fair to your survivors. Former Costa Rica resident Ruth Dixon-Mueller, Ph.D. brings a unique perspective to bear on inheritance practices in the United States. Published Sept. 2017; $14.00 plus shipping at Amazon. Click Here

Trapped In The Damas Cave, Costa Rica
A true story by author Dusty Pilot, who lived in Costa Rica for 11 years. Dusty tells his horrifying story of being trapped in the Damas Cave, near Quepos, for 26 hours. The book is available from Amazon in both digital and print format. Digital format will be on sale for $2.99. Visit Amazon to preview or purchase Click Here

....

"No Meek Messiah"
The author Paulkovich says Jesus was a mythical-character. From the page 55 (Roman leaders decide they need a god, any viable god, to hold the flagging empire together) and page 61 (in 391AD, Roman Emperor Theodosius elevates Jesus, posthumously, to divinity.)
From the author of "No Meek Messiah" Click Here

"Beyond All Religion"
In that book, author Samuel Butler agrees with the thrust of Paulkovich’s new book, revealing that Christianity was chosen by a vote at the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE over several other contending religions. Sample Sam’s book Click Here
Youtube with awesome revelations Click Here

The Dark Side of Pura Vida: Murder, Betrayal, Abduction and Revenge in the Vacation Paradise
By James J. Brodell
Retired baseball player Jack Patterson becomes suspicious after his younger sister dies in a Pacific Ocean rip tide while on vacation in Costa Rica. Jack has to go there to find answers to troubling questions.
Read a sample and purchase the book Click Here

The New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica: The official guide to relocation
By Christopher Howard
This guidebook was published to HELP people of all ages and budgets move to Costa Rica SUCCESSFULLY and make their dreams come true.
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Life is a Tropical Garden
By Victoria Torley
A quirky look at gardening in the tropics. What happens when a "Northern" gardener moves to Costa Rica? You have no idea.
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Make gifts from dollars or colones
Running out of gift ideas? Author Dusty Pilot has just released easy to follow, step-by-step instructions for turning bills (dollars or colones) of any denomination into unique gifts such as flowers: roses, daffodils, daisies and poinsettias; shirts and blouses, and birds with flapping wings. Preview or purchase at Amazon. Click Here

The Trouble with Cash
By John H Paterson
Greg and Liz must sell their property in Costa Rica to finance their retirement. They receive an offer for their full asking price of $1million, but it comes with one condition... the payment is to be in cash. They go for it. Things go wrong. The money is stolen.The local police are no help so Greg devises his own plan to get their money back. Buy the book on Amazon. Click Here

....

Published Thursday, August 30, 2018 - Sixth news page

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

Pedro Sánchez, speaking on his first tour of Latin America since becoming Spain's prime minister in June, promised to support any effort to use dialogue in Venezuela to end an economic and political crisis that he said had deeply worried him.

Sánchez kicked off his four-nation Latin American trip on Monday in Chile, one of several countries in the region where Venezuelans are fleeing to escape hyperinflation and shortages of basic goods under Socialist President Nicolas Maduro.

"It's a crisis that's been growing for some time in Venezuela, and we of course look at it with deep concern," Sánchez said at a news conference in Santiago with Chile's President Sebastian Pinera, a fierce critic of Maduro.

But Sánchez stressed that Spain, which once colonized most of Latin America, had no intention of interfering in internal affairs in the region.

"Venezuela has to start a dialogue with itself . . . to find a solution to this political crisis. And of course, the international community must accompany that dialogue," Sánchez said. "I guarantee Spain will be very active in that."

Several countries in Latin America, including Chile, Peru, Mexico, Argentina and Brazil, have called on Maduro to enact democratic reforms and accept international humanitarian aid to stem a growing exodus of Venezuelans across the region.

Friday the United Nations immigration agency said the situation was building toward a crisis moment comparable to events involving refugees in the Mediterranean.

A.M. Costa Rica wire services photo

Several countries in Latin America have called on Maduro to enact democratic reforms and accept international humanitarian aid.

In recent weeks, Ecuador and Peru have tightened their entry requirements for Venezuelans, and an angry mob in Brazil drove a group of migrants back across the border.

"I think what's important is not to forget the Venezuelans, those who emigrate as a consequence of Venezuela's economic and political crisis," Sánchez said.

Sánchez will travel to Bolivia on Tuesday before visiting Colombia and Costa Rica.

Furnished House Inside Gated Property

...

Beautiful house, surrounded by a wonderful nature. 2 bedrooms, 1 bath on private property close to town. $650.00 Includes Electric, Internet, WiFi, Cable TV, water. In Santa Barbara de Heredia. American owner lives on site, quiet, secure.
For more photos and information write to organicfarmhouserental@gmail.com

Code: 9386-072918

Tropical Homes of Costa Rica is offering the best selection of vacation homes, condos and long-term rental homes in Playa Flamingo, Playa Potrero and Playa Brasilito on the Pacific Gold Coast of Guanacaste. A wide selection of private residencies is providing an excellent choice for your stay in this beautiful part
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Please visit our Web page at www.tropicalhomesofcostarica.com or contact us at rentals@tropicalhomesofcostarica.com or call at (506) 2654-5442

Code:9325-082618

Jaco Oceanfront Furnished Condo

Jaco Oceanfront Condo in excellent condition, completely furnished, with air conditioning, hot water, private parking, equipped gym, large pool and garden area, and 24 hour security.

Contains: large bedroom, bath with shower, living/dining area combined with kitchen, equipped with new refrigerator, TV, furniture and cooking equipment. Granite table and counter tops. Continuous cross-current ocean breezes.

Located at the south end of Jaco on quiet extensive beach away from noise, traffic and city tourism.

Monthly maintenance of $221 includes water, security, cable/internet and pool and garden maintenance. Asking price: $145,000.

Contact numbers: (506) 8820-9768 or (506) 2240-2240.

Code: 9380- 090118

Colinas Del Sol
Fenced Gated Parcels

Fenced Gated Parcels for Sale

* Colinas del Sol is a fenced and gated project in a quiet area. * There are 88 clear titled parcels. * Mountain areas with great views.
* Gently sloping level areas ideal for hobby farms, gardening, fruit trees. * Quiet place to get away from the busy city and beach crowds. * All lots have gravel roads to them, water and electricity at each. * Parcels are 5,000 sq. meters or larger, starting at only $50,000 USD * Located in Libertad, Guanacaste, northwest Pacific area of Costa Rica. * 20 minutes to the Liberia International Airport * 15 minutes to the Pacific Beaches * 10 minutes to Medical Facilities * 25 minutes to the Liberia Hospital * 5 minutes to Vista Ridge Golf Club.

Contact:
In Costa Rica, Jeffrey Sandi Murray: jsandimurray@colinasdelsolcr.com
In the USA and Canada contact Jim Day: jimday50@aol.com or USA call +517-484-3675
For more information: www.colinasdelsolcr.com

Code: 9342-090318

Code: 9350-050419

Costa Rica's first Realtor specialized in Eco Properties, Eco Consulting, Green Living and Hotel Real Estate & Hotel Consulting. Own farm with sustainable development project under planning. 

  • Specialized in the Central and South Pacific, Hotels in the whole country.
• Great network of Realtors, to find your dream property.
• Homes, condominium & luxury homes.
• Eco lodges and hotels. 
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• Farms and project developments.
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• Hotel Real Estate and Hotel Consulting.

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info@ecorealtorscr.com 
peter@hotels4salecostarica.com
 
Visit our sites: 
www.ecorealtorscr.com  
www.hotels4salecostarica.com
Telephone: +506 8825-6556
US phone: 1-626-461-7851
Skype: ecorealtorscr
 Follow us on Facebook: ecorealtorscr

Green NAR designee, member of the CCBR, CRGAR

Code:9368-112118

Business For Sale

Versatile 2 Floors Building
in La Sabana

Completely remodeled building. 14 areas for residence and/or offices, call center, upscale storage. Transportation within 50 meters, commuter train, buses and taxis. In La Sabana, San Jose. School, park, gymnasium, tennis club and National soccer stadium walking distance. 24-hour security, many restaurants, clubs and social facilities nearby. Approximately 323 meter construction. Asking $295,000.

Contact Jim Holley
E-Mail: jimmy6902001@yahoo.com
Local CR phone: (506) 8912-5651

Code:9333-072318

Three Cabins in La Fortuna
San Carlos

In La Fortuna San Carlos. Price $145,000 USD

Three cabins for sale fully furnished with AC, hot water, micro waves, refrigerators, flat screen TV. three years old.Lot is 22 meters by 49 meters. fenced and gated with private drive.Fish and shrimp pond on property with several tropical plants as well as several fruit trees.Room for more new construction house or cabins. This property is in the country but close to Fortuna central.Cabins advertised on AirBnB. Good income property.

Call Harry +(506) 8682-9219
Email: lagringo2003@yahoo.com

Code:9344-081518

Browse Wyndham Timeshares for sale and rent by owner in Costa Rica at bargain prices. We connect existing timeshare owners with those looking to buy or rent a timeshare on the resale market.

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Code:9369-042919

Costa Rica Solar
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Email: Paul.Furlong@CR-Solar.com
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Code:9382-122118

Published Thursday, August 30, 2018 - Seventh news page

New generation of viper ladies emerges in San José

By A.M. Costa Rica staff

Investigators say a new generation of viper ladies has emerged in San José.

The original Viper Lady, who may have been a man, was well known to expats 17 or 18 years ago. The individual would open up a conversation with a tourist or obvious expat and then invite him for drinks, claiming the day was her birthday and she was sad and lonely because she had no one with whom to celebrate.

The original Viper Lady racked up an impressive score among expats frequenting the downtown areas of San José over two years and earned her nickname from the press.

Once her victim joined her at a local bar, he began feeling strange and very cooperative. Investigators still are not sure what type of drug she used.

The cooperative victim quickly yielded important information like debit card pin numbers, addresses, and the location of valuables.

The Viper Lady never was caught, and investigators said they thought she moved to another country after her scheme became so well-known among potential victims.

Since then there have been Viper Lady wannabes, young women who express their willingness to accompany a male expat to his home and then drug him in his living room.

A Florida lawyer reported that he managed to lock himself in his bedroom when he felt the initial effects of the drug.

He awoke much later to find that the rest of his apartment was stripped. He never could figure out how crooks could negotiate his sofa through the guarded entrance.

Sometimes the crooks work in pairs or trios. Another expat met two young ladies who quickly agreed to visit his home.

As he traveled with them by taxi, he noticed that they seemed to have a close relationship with the driver. He pretended to become car sick, stepped out and ran.

Few of the cases end up in police files because a lot of expats do not want to admit their temporary stupidity.

But the game goes on. The Judicial Investigating Organization said Tuesday that they had detained two women, 21 and 23, on allegations of aggravated robbery.

Judicial Investigating Organization courtesy photo

Three women in total have been working the San José
bars seeking mostly male victims.

It is a similar story. Three women in total have been working the San José bars seeking mostly male victims.

They would strike up an acquaintance with a likely victim, obtain vital personal information and then accompany him to his house or apartment.

Once in the dwelling and after verifying that no one else is there, the drug goes in the victim's drink. Some victims have remained knocked out for hours and even days, judicial investigators said.

Some victims have required medical treatment, they added. Agents said there have been six cases in the last few months.

The goal of the robbers is to take the furnishings and valuables in the homes, agents said.

Investigators think there are unreported cases and are asking victims to come forward. They said the robbers have taken goods worth at least 10 millions colons.

The two suspects were detained after raids at homes in Paso Ancho and Los Guido, both in the San José canton.