Regarding your disagreement, I’m drawing somewhat from my biography of Ortega:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7392726-unfinished-revolution

My sense, from much research and mulling, is that Ortega and his brother, Humberto, are masters in this business of, let us call it, soft authoritarianism. They consistently get the balance right (which is how Daniel can still run the country out of his hip pocket with overwhelming popular support).

By comparison, guys like Noriega were lightweights. Everybody (except him I guess) knew early on that he was a goner, and accordingly they used him. Perhaps one exists, but I see nobody in Costa Rica in even Noriega’s talent league.

Soft authoritarianism isn’t easy, but there’s a real talented example of one in Nicaragua.

This said, the last evidence I have of the Ortega brothers controlling the drug trade in Nicaragua comes from the 1990s. Humberto would appear to be out of it now, since he’s comfortably retired to Costa Rica, but Daniel still controls everything else in Nicaragua–the government, the media, the church, the unions, the private sector, and even the neighborhood watch committees–so why would anyone imagine that he doesn’t also control the drug trade?

My thinking is that Ortega is just a lot more skilled than most people in his business, and lumping him together with hacks seriously underestimates him.

It makes sense that more established political structures have better networking ability. Both the Sandinistas and PLN have political longevity. Noriega is another example. Militarized countries likely can do it covertly trading arms for drugs trades.

Costa Rica uses their agricultural sector. Helicopters and planes are in and out, as well as trucks and boats.

With that said, the road ends in Panama. It makes sense much is washed in Costa Rica– especially considering its tourism based economy that has a lot of foreign capital flowing in and out. There was a succinct reason Liberty Reserve was set up and operated here.

I have said it before and I will say it again. I enjoy your line of thinking, Ken.

Although pure conjecture, it’s been fairly obvious to me for a long time that the drug trade through Nicaragua is being managed by high-level people in or with tight connections to the government. There’s no other plausible explanation for how Nicaragua has managed to avoid the problems associated with it that every other Central American country has.

We also have good reason to believe that a Nica official from the 1990s, who happens to appear in another of today’s stories, was personally receiving regular payoffs from the Nicaraguan military, which then was running the drug trade. It doesn’t make much sense that a country with that history of institutional involvement in the business would give it up.

This all still remains conjecture, but I think what we have in Nicaragua is the government itself as the biggest drug gang. This is why other drug gangs can’t get a toehold in the country, as well as why other strange things happen–or don’t happen.

Mind, whoever is running the operation is very smart. They know that they need to make a few busts from time to time to keep the US happy. They also know, or at least are told, that Nicaragua doesn’t want drugs inside the country afflicting its people. Nicas are as a consequence comparatively drug free (though some are big drinkers). However, as a transit route and a place for a little money laundering (Nicaragua needs investment capital) with some skimming off the top, it all works.

It’s a strategy that can work for an authoritarian regime with a political culture tolerant of corruption. It even works well. It wouldn’t though work for a democracy, even a dysfunctional one like Costa Rica’s, or for wannabe authoritarians who aren’t disciplined enough to get the mix right.

Of course, the country doing the seizing gets to keep the funds. The funds seized are supposed to be used to fund the PCD and other law enforcement. I am sure this is a motivating factor.

You have piqued my curiosity though, might be worth a few phone calls…