Wesley Wynne, a federal prosecutor from the Eastern District of Texas, traveled to Costa Rica to meet with authorities and four men facing extradition to the United States on drug trafficking charges.

The visit came just days after the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned four Costa Ricans (identified by their surnames as Gamboa-Sánchez, López-Vega, James-Wilson and Arias-Monge) for alleged involvement in drug trafficking and money laundering.

Wynne’s agenda included talks with Costa Rica’s Attorney General, Carlo Díaz-Sánchez, where he formally presented the U.S. extradition request. Prosecutors accuse the suspects of participating in an international cocaine-trafficking network.

According to Díaz-Sánchez, discussions focused on strengthening coordination between the two nations on extradition procedures for Costa Rican citizens, both in the current case and in potential future requests.

In May 2025, Costa Rica approved a constitutional reform allowing the extradition of its own nationals accused of drug trafficking or terrorism. That change directly applies to the four men sanctioned by OFAC.

The meetings also addressed the possible seizure of assets belonging to the suspects and how those assets would be handled once transferred to U.S. authorities.

Wynne later visited Costa Rica’s Supreme Court, where he presented a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) award to the Judicial Investigation Organization (OIJ).

The DEA recognition honored Costa Rican investigators for their role in “Operation Shock,” which led to the arrest of Picado-Grijalba, a suspected drug trafficker from Limón province. Picado was detained in December 2024 at London’s Heathrow International Airport under an international warrant issued by the Eastern District of Texas. He remains in custody in the United Kingdom.

The arrest was coordinated through Costa Rica’s Specialized Office Against Organized Crime (OECDO), Interpol, and the U.S. Department of Justice.

“The OIJ has done an outstanding job in the fight against drug trafficking,” Wynne said during the award ceremony. “This collaboration between the United States and Costa Rica is key to tackling a problem that affects both countries and the entire world.”

“This recognition reaffirms the OIJ’s commitment to the fight against organized crime," OIJ Director Randall Zúñiga said, accepting the award. "The ‘Shock’ case is an example of the joint work carried out by the OIJ, DEA, and the Attorney General’s Office to achieve shared goals in security and justice.”

The U.S.–Costa Rica partnership has been central in recent operations. In a recent joint effort, the U.S. Coast Guard and Costa Rican authorities seized more than 1.6 tons of cocaine and arrested four suspects.

Costa Rican authorities are urging the public to report drug activity through the confidential hotline 800-8000-645 or the rapid-response line at 1176, which offers bilingual operators in English and Spanish.