Costa Rican investigators spent today searching a remote farm in Guácimo, in the Caribbean area of Limón, for the remains of at least 10 people reported missing from the area. The property belongs to a man arrested in September on suspicion of belonging to a criminal group tied to a drug-trafficking figure killed by police in July.
Agents from the Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) in Pococí searched seven homes and the surrounding land in Carambola, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) from central Guácimo. Prosecutors from the Pococí office, led by Deputy Prosecutor José Mena, took part in the operation.
Dogs trained to find human remains swept the property, which sits in an isolated area of banana plantations. The OIJ said the search followed confidential tips and other investigative work suggesting the bodies of the missing people could be buried on the farm. The agency said that hypothesis still has to be confirmed through judicial proceedings.
As of this afternoon, authorities had not reported finding any remains or making any arrests. The missing people are residents of Pococí and Guácimo. The OIJ has not released their names, how long they have been missing or the circumstances of their disappearances.
The farm belongs to a man with the last name of Cortés Hernández. He was arrested in September along with a man known as “Coco Cigarros,” whom police describe as the contraband chief of an organization linked to alias “Coco Guácimo.” Neither man has been convicted. Authorities have not said whether all seven homes searched Thursday are connected to Cortés Hernández.
Coco Guácimo, identified by authorities as Roney José Ríos Oconitrillo, was shot and killed by OIJ tactical agents in July during the operation that ended with the capture of Alejandro Arias Monge, alias “Diablo,” who had spent a decade as our most wanted fugitive. The Diablo investigation has since reached into institutions in the area. As an example, in September, two Pococí judges and a judicial agent were detained on suspicion of links to the network.
The OIJ asked anyone with information about the missing people to call its confidential line at 800-8000-645.
