INFOSURHOY – Costa Rican police confiscated 19.2 tons of cocaine from January to Dec. 15, making it one of the leading countries in drug seizures in the region, according to the Public Security Ministry.
The achievement was reached through a strategy of shielding the country’s borders against the drug trade, Public Security Minister Mario Zamora said.
“Costa Rica [is one of the leaders] in Central America in dismantling structures that are engaged in the sale and trafficking of drugs, preventing other consequences such as the crimes connected to these types of activities,” Public Security Vice Minister Celso Gamboa said.
An investment of US$1.2 million in 2013 allowed the Public Security Ministry to improve police training through the National Police Academy and bolster the country’s Air Surveillance, Coast Guard and Border Patrol services. The money also was used to acquire vehicles and boats to combat drug trafficking, which involved collaborating with the United States and Colombia.
“The Police Academy had serious infrastructure problems,” Zamora said. “We were able to establish a site for the provision of basic police instruction. Another measure involved extending the police course from six to 10 months, which has improved the quality of our human resources.”
The ministry acquired 326 new police cars, ending 2013 with a fleet of 500 vehicles patrolling the streets nationwide. It also received two high-speed interceptor boats to reinforce its work in the Pacific.
The Public Security Ministry built three new coast guard stations along the Atlantic Coast and strengthened its operations from the Pacific central base of Cuajiniquil, 250 kilometers north of San José.
Costa Rican police confiscated 19.2 tons of cocaine from January to Dec. 15, making it one of the leading countries in drug seizures in the region, according to the Public Security Ministry.
The achievement was reached through a strategy of shielding the country’s borders against the drug trade, Public Security Minister Mario Zamora said.
“Costa Rica [is one of the leaders] in Central America in dismantling structures that are engaged in the sale and trafficking of drugs, preventing other consequences such as the crimes connected to these types of activities,” Public Security Vice Minister Celso Gamboa said.
An investment of US$1.2 million in 2013 allowed the Public Security Ministry to improve police training through the National Police Academy and bolster the country’s Air Surveillance, Coast Guard and Border Patrol services. The money also was used to acquire vehicles and boats to combat drug trafficking, which involved collaborating with the United States and Colombia.
“The Police Academy had serious infrastructure problems,” Zamora said. “We were able to establish a site for the provision of basic police instruction. Another measure involved extending the police course from six to 10 months, which has improved the quality of our human resources.”
The ministry acquired 326 new police cars, ending 2013 with a fleet of 500 vehicles patrolling the streets nationwide. It also received two high-speed interceptor boats to reinforce its work in the Pacific.
The Public Security Ministry built three new coast guard stations along the Atlantic Coast and strengthened its operations from the Pacific central base of Cuajiniquil, 250 kilometers north of San José.
