Comments on: Costa Rican authorities carry out 30 coordinated raids to dismantle leadership of San Jose narco gangs

By: Ben

Ben — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 18:59:00 +0000

Just shoot the Narco in public and no more problems.

By: Timothy Williams

Timothy Williams — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 14:39:00 +0000

Yes, if I remember right they are published in the ‘boletin.’

By: A Dull Roar

A Dull Roar — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 12:03:00 +0000

I signed up for the likely suspects of said “newsletter,” i.e. publicaciones, revista, boletin and informes y estatisdicas. Are any of those going to have information on the subastas?

By: Timothy Williams

Timothy Williams — Tue, 27 Oct 2015 21:09:00 +0000

One other interesting aspect of this is that technically, the finance court must “prove” that the property was indeed the proceeds of crime, but that “proof” can be established by the inability of the defendant to explain/demonstrate where the proceeds to purchase the property came from. (I have been asked this before – in the sense that isn’t a defendant before the finance court, in a sense “guilty until proven innocent.) – I can’t answer that question, just explaining the logic used. Pura vida

PS – also, before seizing property, “reasonable suspicion” must be established that the property is the proceed of crime (which is why a criminal case must be established first, even though the cases – the property and the crime – are not in fact part of the same judicial case)

By: richard schlinder

richard schlinder — Tue, 27 Oct 2015 21:05:00 +0000

Hay Thanks Tim. Excellent response. Puda vida.

By: Timothy Williams

Timothy Williams — Tue, 27 Oct 2015 20:50:00 +0000

Yes, in fact. A separate proceeding (apart from the criminal proceedings) is established with the finance court (known as the Financial Crimes Court) for the district in which they are seized, at which time the owner (in this case, the suspected narco gang leader) must demonstrate where the proceeds used to purchase the vehicles came from. If he is unable to establish the (lawful) origin of the proceeds, the vehicles (or other property, including real estate) are auctioned off one (sometimes twice) per year.

The best source of information about upcoming auctions (subastas) by the Ministry of Public Security (MSP) is to visit Banco Nacional or BCR and simply ask a bank manager when and where the next “subastas de MSP” are to take place. The reason for this is there are sometimes some really good deals for the taking, including real estate, which the banks themselves occasionally buy on the cheap as investments.

All funds from auctions of items seized from those suspected or convicted of money laundering or drug trafficking are, in theory, used to fund the drug control police (PCD) and related agencies with additional resources and equipment.

By: richard schlinder

richard schlinder — Tue, 27 Oct 2015 20:25:00 +0000

Does anyone know what becomes of those vehicles?