LatinNews Daily - 30 March 2026

Costa Rica: On 20 March Costa Rica’s Attorney General Carlo Díaz announced the extradition of two “high-profile individuals” to the US as part of the first-ever extradition of Costa Rican nationals, which he said marked a “major milestone in the fight against international drug trafficking”. This follows a judicial reform passed by Costa Rica’s 57-member unicameral legislature in May 2025 which allows for the extradition of Costa Rican citizens for international drug trafficking or terrorism offences. One of those extradited was former security minister Celso Gamboa (2014-2015), who was arrested in Costa Rica in June 2025, and charged the following month in the US with federal drug trafficking violations. According to a 23 March 2026 statement by the US Department of Justice, Gamboa is charged with “conspiring with other international drug traffickers to manufacture, distribute, and transport significant quantities of cocaine, much of which was trafficked through Costa Rica and ultimately into the United States for further distribution”. His alleged associate, Edwin López Vega, was also charged in a separate drug trafficking-related indictment and extradited to the US alongside Gamboa. In response to the US’ filing of the charges against Gamboa in July 2025, Costa Rica’s President Rodrigo Chaves was cited by the local media as saying that the case could be “just the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to corruption in the country, referring to Gamboa as being “like a canary, in a golden cage, singing”, suggesting that more officials could be implicated. In the week of his extradition, Gamboa told newswire Reuters that he would testify in the US, and that he was willing to share information on others involved in the conspiracy if his family’s safety was guaranteed.

End of preview - This article contains approximately 910 words.

Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article

Not a Subscriber?

Choose from one of the following options

• Subscribe
• Sign up for a one-time, 14-day trial