Former Immigration Official Charged in Issuing False Work Permits and Visas
An former Migración (immigration) official earned some ¢30 million colones (us$58.000) in only one month for providing visas and work permits to a group of South Americans last November. The name of the 47 year old former immigration official was not revealed by immigration director, Mario Zamora, who made a formal complaint of fraud to the Ministerio Público last May 22.

The former-official would charge up us$1.800 for a package that includes a work permit and a cédula de residencia (residency).

The former official was well known to immigration officials as she was seen freely coming and going at the immigration offices in La Uruca as well as the Juan Santamaría airport. The former official has resigned from her post at immigration in 2001.

The fraud was discovered when on May 3, a lawyer for a Chilean woman who had obtained a work permit from  the woman, presented documents for renewal. The renewal was denied based on the fact that the documents were false and never issued by the immigration department.

The signature on the document was not that of the authorized immigration official. Days later, the owner of the restaurant where the woman worked also discovered that his and his wife's residency cedula were also false. The same was the case for the group of 35 that were given work permits last November.

The owner of the restaurant and the workers made the formal complaint to immigration.

Director Zamora added that the former official had help from others inside the immigration service and that in the last two months some 40 others fraud cases have been opened against notaries and both current and former immigration officials.

All the charges are for irregularities in issuing work permits and visas, Zamora said.

"Nor the material, nor the signature and the least not even the cedula or work permit numbers correspond to any official record used by the immigration service", said director Zamora.