The Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) dismantled a gang dedicated to human trafficking for the sexual exploitation of minors after carrying out 19 simultaneous raids in different parts of the country, mainly in Heredia and Guanacaste.
According to OIJ Director General Randall Zúñiga, the main targets of the operation were located in Playas del Coco and Filadelfia, Guanacaste, although there were also actions in San Ramón, Cartago, San José, and Guararí de Heredia (see video attached on the cover).
The Judicial Police have already arrested 19 people, including two Chinese men, a naturalized Costa Rican citizen and a resident, identified as the leaders of the organization. The case began in December of last year, when a mother reported her daughter missing.
Thanks to a parental control system installed on the minor’s cell phone, the woman noticed that the girl had traveled outside her community to the province of Puntarenas. The minor returned home the next day, but the incident set off alarm bells for investigators.
A month later, in January, a very similar case was reported, leading the OIJ to identify a pattern and possible links between the two incidents. The investigation uncovered a criminal network that recruited teenagers through social media and chat groups, taking advantage of their economic vulnerability to sexually exploit them.
So far, ten minors have been identified as victims, receiving payments of up to ₡600,000 per encounter. The ringleaders operated mainly from Guanacaste, where they even had a mansion valued at nearly one million dollars, which they used for illegal meetings.
The OIJ indicated that the investigation is continuing to determine whether there are more victims or individuals involved in this sexual exploitation and human trafficking network.
The Judicial Police are requesting the public’s assistance in locating a 49-year-old man of Asian descent with the last name Sun, who remains at large following raids carried out on Monday by the Heredia Regional Delegation.
Sun is believed to be one of the leaders of the alleged network dedicated to the trafficking and sexual exploitation of minors.
“As part of this investigation, 16 adults and three minors were arrested on suspicion of belonging to a criminal organization linked to crimes such as human trafficking for sexual exploitation, rape, corruption of minors, seduction, possession of child sexual abuse material, illegal trafficking of migrants, and money laundering,” said the Prosecutor’s Office.
The arrests were made during 17 raids carried out in Filadelfia, Playas del Coco, Moravia, Desamparados, Alajuelita, Heredia, Cartago, and San Ramón, where physical and electronic evidence related to the investigation was also collected.
The adults arrested remain at the disposal of the Prosecutor’s Office, while the minors will be dealt with by the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office for the corresponding proceedings. According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the victims were forced to have sex with other individuals or to produce sexual content that was sold on various internet platforms.
The investigation is ongoing.
