San José (EFE).- Costa Rican authorities extradited the former magistrate and former Minister of Security Celso Gamboa and his alleged associate Edwin López to the United States on Friday to face charges of drug trafficking and illicit association, making them the first Costa Rican nationals extradited in the country’s history following a recent constitutional reform.
Gamboa and López were transferred to US agents and transported on a Drug Enforcement Administration plane that took off at 8:54 am local time from Juan Santamaría International Airport, bound for Texas.
“Today marks the first extradition of Costa Rican citizens at the request of the US government, a milestone in the fight against international drug trafficking. For years, we have seen how people, both nationals and naturalized citizens, linked to these criminal activities have used our nationality as a mechanism to evade international justice,” said Attorney General Carlo Díaz.
Díaz stated that Costa Rica is sending “a clear message” that “no one will be able to use our nationality as a shield to evade justice.”
Gamboa and López, accused by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas of illicit association and international distribution of large quantities of cocaine, were held in a maximum-security prison in Costa Rica.
As of Friday, they were transferred to Juan Santamaría International Airport, on the outskirts of San José, under heavy security to finalize their extradition.
US authorities accuse Gamboa of being one of the main drug traffickers in Costa Rica and of facilitating the shipment of cocaine valued at tens of millions of dollars from Colombia to the US via Costa Rica.
According to the US indictment, Gamboa used his network of contacts within the Costa Rican government to obtain information on anti-drug investigations and sell it to other drug traffickers.
He also allegedly laundered money through his law firm and the Limón Black Star soccer club, which plays in Costa Rica’s second division.
Gamboa, 49, served as Minister of Security from 2014 to 2015 and as Director of Intelligence and National Security from 2013 to 2014.
In 2016, Congress appointed him as a magistrate of the Third Chamber; however, he was suspended a year and a half later amid a corruption scandal.
In May 2025, the Costa Rican Congress approved a constitutional amendment allowing the extradition of Costa Rican nationals for drug trafficking and terrorism offenses only.
Since then, nearly 20 Costa Ricans have been requested for extradition, primarily by the US for drug trafficking offenses.
Gamboa and López are the first Costa Ricans that the country has extradited since the May 2025 constitutional reform.
The US had to sign a formal written agreement promising that any prison sentence imposed on the extradited individuals would not exceed 50 years, the maximum allowed by Costa Rican law.EFE
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