President Rodrigo Chaves announced that the Government has denounced the Adral Corporation, which belongs to the Arias family, along with other implicated parties, before the Attorney General’s Office regarding the El Jobo case.
According to Trivisión Channel 36, brothers Óscar and Rodrigo Arias acquired land that the government had donated to locals in El Jobo, canton of La Cruz de Guanacaste. These lands were transformed into luxury hotels and tourist developments, increasing their value exponentially.
Investigations suggest that the Agrarian Development Institute (IDA) removed legal limitations to allow politicians affiliated with the PLN party to acquire and sell agricultural plots of land irregularly. The Arias brothers, through the Adral Corporation, own extensive properties in the El Jobo area of Guanacaste. In total, they own 297,000 square meters, equivalent to 29.7 hectares, in one of the most coveted and developing areas of Guanacaste.
“There is a criminal complaint before the Public Prosecutor’s Office against the general legal representative of the company Adral, former mayors, and officials of the Mayor’s Office,” said President Chaves. The President expressed his indignation and sadness at the situation, which he considers unjust. Chaves mentioned that said land should belong exclusively to the people of Guanacaste.
“There are still remains of the legacy of those who used the political power you gave them, to benefit themselves, which is almost inconceivable to me, unimaginable,” added the President. According to Chaves, Adral presented false documents, which misled INDER, MINAE, and ICT. He also stated that the concession given to the corporation should be canceled as it is “the product of fraud.”
“If they had not deceived the ICT and MINAE back then, and who knows if they were deceived or were accomplices, I don’t know; that concession would’ve never happened. But now we have to take it back,” stated President Chaves. The head of state also assured that his administration would “do the impossible to recover those 200,000 m² of your patrimony.”
When asked about the case, Rodrigo Arias, now president of the Legislative Assembly and PLN deputy, stated that he does not have and has not had any relationship with the company that owns the properties in El Jobo. He also clarified that these lands were acquired in compliance with all legal requirements and ethical principles.
