By the
A.M. Costa Rica staff
Agents of the Prosecutor's office
of La Union* in
Tres Rios, in coordination with
the agents of the Prosecutor's
office Against Drug Trafficking,
Thursday detained two U.S.
citizens surnamed: Owen-Strauss,
male, 69 years old, and
Redondo-Ramos female, who has dual
citizenship in Cuba and the U.S.
Both were detained as suspects of
being part of a gang dedicated to
cultivating and marketing
marijuana.
The investigation states that four
more men were arrested, with Owen
and Redondo, all Costa Ricans,
identified as: Cortés-Amador,
Bermúdez-Molina, Bastos-Herrera,
and Pizarro-Cartín.
One of the Costa Rican detainees,
Cortés-Amador, is the son of
Guiselle Amador, who was the
Minister of Health last year.
Information provided by the
Presidential House indicates that
President Alvarado was informed
last year that the investigation
was starting and that it involved
one of the Minister Amador
relatives. The investigation was
apparently the trigger for the
President to ask to the Minister
to resign in November 2018. On her
resignation, the minister had said
that she was leaving the post due
to health reasons.
It is important to clarify that
the Presidential House confirms
that the sensitive information
given to the president on this
case was never shared to the
former Minister Amador, because
the case was in its initial stage
and all information in that phase
is confidential.
The president named Daniel Salas
to replace Amador. Salas is the
current Minister of Health.
Agents report that this
investigation began in April 2018,
when the police received
confidential information about the
suspects who were renting houses
to produce marijuana in controlled
environments, known as hydroponic
marijuana.
Based on that complaint, the
agents conducted the
investigations that resulted in
the raids that were made
simultaneously in a warehouse in La Union*
de Tres Rios and five houses
located in the provinces of Cartago*, Heredia* and
San José*.
As a
result of the raids, the six
individuals noted above were
captured and a large amount of
marijuana, documents and other
evidence was seized.
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Security
Ministry courtesy photos
Owen-Strauss
and Redondo-Ramos were
detained
as suspects of being
part of a gang.
Prosecutor's agents
said, "it is believed
that they extracted
the oil and wax from
the plants, as those
products have a higher
concentration of
tetrahydrocannabinol
(THC, the main
psychoactive component
of cannabis) compared
to chopped marijuana,
then, apparently, they
sold the derivatives
in ampoules or
cartridges, with
prices ranging between
₵60,000 ($98.52) and
₵100,000 ($164)."
The six suspects were
transferred to cells
of the Public
Prosecutor's office,
where they were
questioned. A criminal
court judge will set
their pre-trial
measures.
At the close of the
edition, former
Minister Amador has
not given any
statements about the
detention of her son.
The case remains under
investigation.
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Have you heard about the sale or use of
marijuana oil
in Costa Rica?
We would like to know
your thoughts on this
story. Send your
comments to: news@amcostarica.com
*Reach
the place on google
maps.
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