Q COSTARICA — The head of the Dirección de Inteligencia y Seguridad Nacional (DIS) — Costa Rica’s Intelligence and Security Directorate, Jorge Torres, filed a complaint on Tuesday with the Fiscalia (Attorney General’s Office) alleging a death threat against President Rodrigo Chaves.
According to Torres, who spoke to television media outlets that were already aware of the information when he arrived at the Fiscalia to file the complaint, confidential reports indicate that a hitman has been hired to assassinate Chaves.
Following the reports on Tuesday of a death threat against President Rodrigo Chaves, a woman, surnamed Chinchilla Mora, and a supporter of the Frente Amplio (FA), the party condemned all acts of violence.
The Fiscalia (Public Prosecutor’s Office), which is investigating a possible attempted murder, said the alleged threat was made by the 62-year-old woman Stella Chinchilla Mora, a supporter of the Frente Amplio (FA), who posted a video on her social media accounts.
According to the DIS filing, there is a WhatsApp message in which the woman allegedly states the following: “They had all the time in the world. To get rid of that misogynist (Chaves). They didn’t have the courage. If your hitman doesn’t have the courage, I’ll use the rest of the money to pay you to kill yourselves for being useless.”
The Frente Amplio, in an official statement, stated: “We categorically reject any act of violence or aggression against the president or any other political figure. We consider an incident like the one reported this morning to be extremely serious and must be investigated thoroughly by the relevant judicial authorities. We have repeatedly denounced, from all platforms, that violence should never have a place in politics.”
Although the alert was made public on Tuesday, according to Torres, it was made public hours before the arrival of the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, for an official visit at the invitation of Rodrigo Chaves, and 19 days before the presidential elections in Costa Rica.
In filing the formal complaint, Director Torres added that the alleged threat included the Salvadoran president.
The nature of the threat remains unclear, but officials are treating it with utmost seriousness, given the potential risks it poses to national stability.
For now, authorities are keeping the case confidential, as is standard procedure in these types of reports, and the Fiscalia will be responsible for determining the veracity of the information, identifying any potential perpetrators, and any possible criminal charges.
The alleged death threat against Costa Rica’s president, the first in the country’s history, stirred alarm within the country’s political circles and raised questions about the security environment surrounding the nation’s highest office.
A “setup”
ElMunco.cr reports that Chinchilla Mora called the accusations against her regarding an alleged plot to assassinate President Rodrigo Chaves “a setup” and told the media, “I don’t know what they’re accusing me of, honestly. They’re saying I paid someone to send a hitman, or something like that, someone told me. But I’m on my way to see my lawyer.”
“I’m not going to say anything else, except that this is a crude, dirty setup, just like this government,” she added.