Costa Rica’s Drug Smugglers Problem – Crocodiles

Costa Rica Crocodiles are just waiting for the sweet taste of Drug Smugglers

As Costa Rica slowly but surely becomes the new hub for drug trafficking, and with San Jose now the place to smuggle containers of drugs to the US,  it now appears that drug smugglers have a new problem, which is not the US DEA, local police or competition, but crocodiles!

It’s no surprise that the Central Pacific between Puntarenus to Quepos with the hot tourist spot of  Jaco between has become the focal point for smugglers. Local commercial and charter sports fishing services have seen an increase in smugglers paraphernalia like floating 50 gal gas/diesel drums and plastic bags and newspaper sporting the containers place of origin, South America, particularly, Columbia.

On a recent fishing trip out of Los Suenos, we spotted a huge debris patty, which was great for catching Dorado, but also great for catching smuggler’s garage. Water bottles, plastic bags and empty quarts of oil littered the patty. Most sports fishers are very anal about eco-minded Costa Rica, so this garbage comes from those that could care less about Costa Rica’s environment and care more about their illegal cargo.

Crocodiles Target Zone is between Puntarenas and Quepos

These smugglers use small boats  to resupply gas, oil, water and food to homemade wooden submarines or high-speed crafts filled with cocaine and hide their boats in local rivers that are filled with huge crocodiles. Now with the mating season approaching (December to April) crocodiles leave the rivers and cross through the sea in search for another river looking for a mate and this has taken the lives of God-knows now many smugglers.  At more popular Costa Rica beaches, signs have been posted stating the dangers of swimming and surfing during this mating season.

Crocodiles do not normally attack humans, but having random drug smugglers jumping in water launching or beaching a craft under cover of darkness makes them a prime target. This aggressive and frightening behavior is certainly not out of the ordinary during the mating season.

North of Quepos, a croc was killed and inside the stomach was a half eaten body that was later identified as a Columbia national.

Rumors and stories are wide spread among the local sport fishermen, some claim that as many as 2-4 smugglers are killed a week due to crocodile attacks. Obvious they go unreported, and who is going to bitch; its one way to let nature do it work to the illegal actives.

In Sept 2008, many remember when 13-year old Surfer Dakota Kilbride was having fun surfing in Playa Hermosa, just south of Jaco. Dakota was suddenly attacked by a huge crocodile, and only the will to survive saved his life. Dakota suffered severe bites on this ankle and leg.

Another youth, Brynan Sandi, literally ran for his life in Playa Azul. The crocodile chased him out of the water and onto the beach where he was able to get away and happened within three weeks of the first attack in the same Central Pacific region of Costa Rica.

Some eco-gurus and animal activists blame this new occurrence on development, stating that the natural habitat of the crocodile is being destroyed, forcing them to move on to less inhabited regions.

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