Police officers received confidential information about a white sedan car whose driver was transporting drugs.
/ Drug Control Police courtesy photo
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Police detain couple with nine kilos
of cocaine hidden in their car
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Drug Control Police report that, on Friday during a road control operation that took place near Puente Blanco, in Ciudad Cortés*, in Osa, the officers of the Palmar Norte town* station received confidential information about a white sedan car whose driver was transporting drugs.
When the officers detected a car with the description similar to the one reported in the alert, they stopped the driver, a man surnamed Villegas, 32 years old, as well as the passenger, a woman surnamed Artavia, 27 years of age.
After police officers searched the car, they found nine packages of cocaine weighing approximately one kilo each which were hidden in the left rear of the vehicle.
The two suspected drug traffickers were taken to the cells of the Public Ministry where they were interviewed by the judicial agents. They are waiting for a judge to order the pre-trial measures against them.
Related to the most recent seized of illegal drugs, as A.M. Costa Rica published on June 14th, officers from the Parrita* and Quepos* stations in Puntarenas met at Isla Damas Beach* to investigate a stranded boat and several packages with drugs on the sand.
The police report that they received the support of officers of the National Coast Guard Service and officers of the Air Surveillance Service who conducted patrols by sea, waterways and air to look for more drugs and the suspects responsible for the cargo.
In addition, they coordinated with officials of the Drug Control Police to carry out the seizure of the drugs.
"The boat is 38 feet long with two 200 hp. engines which carried several empty tanks and others with gasoline, as well as other empty containers, clothing, and tools," said the police in their report.
When they arrived at the scene, they did not locate the boat’s crew so there were no detainees.
With the help of the K-9 unit, a bag was found hidden in banana and weed plants. The bag contained more drugs, 643 rectangular shaped packages filled with marijuana.
The search and seizure operation lasted for six hours. The boat was confiscated and transferred to the Coast Guard Station in Quepos, while the drugs were confiscated as part of the case.
Agents of the Judicial Investigation Organization will continue with the investigation of the case
In another case, on Tuesday, June 11, police found a stranded ship with 1,076 drug packages in Corcovado National Park*.
On June 6, the Air Surveillance Police reported that aerial surveillance spotted a stranded boat surrounded by some suspicious packages. The boat was in a sector of La Leona Beach*.
According to the police report, the pilots observed several packages near the boat and alerted the Border Police, whose personnel located several packages with drugs.
"For more than 48 hours, the officers worked on the collection of packages thrown on the beach and near the rocks, which were washed away by the waves," said the police in its report.
The boat was found destroyed, as were the engines. In addition, 1,076 packages of drugs were found, 958 of them with marijuana and 118 with cocaine.
The Air Surveillance Police had to use the helicopter to carry out the extraction of the drugs, work that was hampered by bad weather conditions and lack of space to land.
In addition, officers detained two men, foreigners, apparently entering the country illegally. They were near the area where the drugs were found. However, the police could not link the two men with the cargo, so they were taken to the immigration offices where they will be investigated to determine their legal status.
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What can authorities do to keep Costa Rican territory from being used as a bridge for the transfer of illegal drugs? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to: news@amcostarica.com
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