By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Police of Control of Drugs detained five Costa
Ricans who arrived at the International Airport Juan
Santamaría* from Spain. All five had unreported
money suspiciously hidden in their clothes.
The police report identified the men with the
surnames: Porras-Quirós, a 27-year-old, who has a
criminal record for the crime of aggravated robbery,
Keiths-Díaz, a 40-year-old who has a criminal record
for drug transport and robbery, Ramos-Méndez, 37 year
old, Murillo-Barboza, a 29-year-old, and
Chinchilla-Mora, a 27-year-old. The last three had no
criminal records.
"The suspects left Costa Rica on February 26, 2019,
traveled to Madrid and re-entered the country on
Wednesday, March 6, from Spain," said the police
report.
The police confiscated the cash that was hidden in
their suspect's clothes and not reported to Migration
officials. The money seized was: €31,505 euros (about
$35,258), $2,790 and ¢ 14,000 colones (about $15), an
average of $7,600 hidden cash on each person.
The suspects were taken to the cells of the Public
Ministry, where judicial agents interviewed them and
opened investigation files. The suspects must remain
in the cells until a judge decides their pre-trial
measures.
In other cases of unreported cash, AM Costa Rica
reported on January 29, that the Drug Control Police
of the Ministry of Public Security detained four
Guatemalan citizens suspected of money laundering.
They were carrying more than $29,000 in cash when they
entered at Juan Santamaría International
Airport in Alajuela*.
According to the police report in that case, the four
male detainees were identified as:
- Moran-Mazariegos, 25, who carried $6,565,
- Suchite-Galdámez, 25, who carried $7,450
- Perez-Barrera, 37, who carried $8,659
- Aldana- Ruano, 30, who carried $7,180
The total amount seized by police was $ 29,854
In accordance with the law of Control of Trans-Border
Cash Transportation, article #35 "Upon entering or
leaving the country, any person, national or foreign,
will be required to declare the cash or securities
they carry or larger than $10,000 or its equivalent in
another currency, for the declaration, they must use
the official forms prepared for that purpose, which
will be made available to the competent officials of
the Customs Administration, in the migratory posts."
|
Police of
Control of Drugs courtesy photo
"The suspects left Costa Rica on February
26, 2019, traveled to Madrid and re-entered the
country on Wednesday, March 6, from Spain," said
the police report.
Although each suspect carried less than $10,000,
they apparently tried to avoid luggage checks
and did not declare that they carried cash.
According to
the police report, the four suspects had an
itinerary to be in Costa Rica from January 25 to
28, the day they would return to Guatemala.
The suspects were referred to the Public
Ministry where their legal situations will be
determined by the judge.
For more information about the law (in Spanish),
go to the Institute of Drugs website at www.icd.go.cr here.
--------
Did you know that someone can be detained even
if they have under the $10,000 limit? We would
like to know your thoughts on this story.
Send your comments to: news@amcostarica.com
*Link to reach the
place on map.
|