Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic drug used for pain relief and anesthesia, has raised alarms in Costa Rica. It is about 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Typically, fentanyl is prescribed to cancer patients or used during surgical procedures.
Recent detections in Costa Rica involve doses with relatively low amounts of fentanyl. However, the Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) confirmed that vials of the drug have been stolen from hospitals run by the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS) and ended up in criminal hands. These thefts follow the first reported cases in 2021.
“What we know is about small thefts of ampoules in national hospitals, but no major or significant thefts have been established in hospitals,” said Michael Soto, director of the OIJ. “Rather, someone takes an ampoule and it doesn’t get noticed much because it is also used for people with chronic pain.”
Costa Rica is not alone in facing thefts of hospital-grade narcotics. Other Central American countries are experiencing similar challenges.
Meanwhile, North America faces a more advanced fentanyl crisis, with widespread circulation of the drug linked to clandestine laboratories using chemical precursors imported from around the world. Canada, the United States and Mexico report regular seizures of such precursors, according to the International Narcotics Control Board. In October 2024, the Netherlands recorded the first seizure of a fentanyl precursor in Europe.
Due to the regional spread of fentanyl and growing concerns in Guatemala, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has warned of an imminent arrival of the drug in Central America.
Last week, Costa Rica’s judicial police participated in a meeting in the United States with senior DEA officials and regional anti-drug chiefs. Attendees exchanged information about how the fentanyl trade operates in their respective countries.
“Our goal is to understand this phenomenon so we can be ready when it hits Costa Rica, so we can work together and keep a close eye on precursors,” Soto said. “For now, there aren’t any cases in Costa Rica. The closest cases are in Guatemala and Mexico, with chemical precursors for making fentanyl that mainly come from Asian and European countries.”
Forensic exams conducted by the OIJ in the first quarter of 2025 indicate that at least six people died in Costa Rica from illegally consuming fentanyl.
