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Published
on Wednesday, October 8, 2025
By
the A.M. Costa Rica
staff
A joint operation
led by the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) and Costa Rican
authorities has resulted in the seizure
of more than 2 tons of cocaine off Costa
Rica’s Pacific coast. According to the
Ministry of Public Security (MSP), the
mission began Tuesday after the DEA
alerted local officials about a suspicious
“go-fast” boat named Mi Deleite
traveling near Pavones Beach in the Golfo
Dulce, Puntarenas Province. Responding to the
alert, Costa Rica’s Coast Guard
intercepted the 36-foot vessel near the
shoreline. The five crew members on
board (two Costa Ricans, identified by
the surnames Gutiérrez and Mora, and
three Colombians, identified as Campaz,
Asprilla, and Palacios) were taken into
custody. Authorities found
large sacks containing dozens of cocaine
packages, along with 26 barrels of
gasoline. Officials later confirmed the
total haul amounted to approximately two
metric tons of cocaine. The vessel was
towed to the Coast Guard station in Golfito Beach, where Costa
Rica’s Drug Control Police conducted a
detailed inspection. The suspects
remain in custody under the jurisdiction
of the Puntarenas Public Ministry, as
prosecutors seek pretrial detention on
international drug trafficking charges.
Costa Rica ranks among
the top three Central American
nations for cocaine seizures,
according to a recent report by
InSight Crime, a Washington, D.C.–based
nonprofit that monitors organized
crime in Latin America and the
Caribbean. In a related
development, the U.S. Embassy in
Costa Rica recently announced
that the U.S. Department of
State is offering rewards of up
to $10 million for information leading to the
disruption of financial networks
tied to major Mexican drug cartels
and other transnational criminal
organizations.
Costa
Rica has recorded some of the highest
narcotics seizure totals in Central
America in recent years. MSP figures show
nearly 32 tons of cocaine and 15 tons of
marijuana were confiscated in 2024 alone.
The country previously seized 72.7 metric
tons in 2020 and 71.1 metric tons in 2021.
Since
2018, the U.S. State Department has
allocated more than $269 million in
bilateral and regional security assistance
to Costa Rica. That support has included
equipment, training, and technical
expertise to strengthen law enforcement,
combat organized crime, and improve the
justice system’s ability to prosecute
transnational criminals.
The
MSP is the public security organization,
oversees citizen safety, public order, and
anti-crime initiatives.
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