By Delfi Cortez for the Panama America - Security officers in the Colon Free Zone detained two Colombians who had in their possession about $140,000 dollars in cash. The seizure of the money occurred on Thursday in one of the gates to the Colon Free Zone in the area of the corridor, at the José Dominador Bazán gate. Hulston Alonso, deputy director of security said the two Colombians were acting nervous which called attention to themselves. They tried to flee, causing the security guards to fire their weapons into the air. The money was turned over to the office of the Anti Drug Prosecutor responsible for the areas of Colon and Kuna Yala who is investigating the case to determine if the money is related to drug trafficking because the money was undeclared.

Panama America - Counter Drug units from the National Police, on duty at the Tocumen International Airport, managed to intercept two drug shipments that were in the hands of foreigners. According to reports they reportedly were trying to bring the drugs to Mexico and Spain. During a routine inspection one person, Jorge Andrés Quinceno Valencia, was found trying to smuggle cocaine in two suitcases, each with a false bottom containing packages wrapped in black plastic that presumably contained cocaine. The second person arrested was Mexican citizen Marco Antonio Ramírez Conejo who was found to have six packages wrapped in transparent plastic taped to his body containing a white powder resumed to be cocaine. The evidence and the suspects were turned over to the judicial authorities of the Anti Drug Prosecutor's Office for further investigation. (Editor's Comment: People get arrested trying to smuggle cocaine out of the Tocumen Airport all the time. This is a routine and common occurrence. These people will now spend about eight years in a hell hole of a Panamanian prison. Occasionally foreigners from the United States or Canada are suckered into trying to smuggle drugs through the airport, and they usually get caught. In short, don't even think about it.)

La Estrella - Panama, Oct 17 (ACAN-EFE) .- Anti-drug authorities of Panama seized 500 kilos of cocaine hidden in a house in the town of Capira, to thw Southwest of the capital city, and arrested two Colombians and a Panamanian associated with this shipment, an official source said today. The First Anti Drug Prosecutor, Javier Caravallo, told reporters that the five hundred packets containing cocaine were found within 21 sacks in a residence of Capira, 54 miles southwest of the capital. During the raid on the house, which happened last night, two Colombian and one Panamanian were arrested who are linked to the contraband, and authorities are investigating to determine if there are others involved in this case, how the drugs arrived in Capira, and to determine its final destination. This seizure is added to another seizure of more than two tons of cocaine authorities have seized in the past 24 hours in the country. On Friday police seized two tons of cocaine hidden in a boat and arrested three Colombians and a Panamanian associated with the drugs at a port in Colon, 80 miles to the North of the capital along Panama's Caribbean coast. The commissioner of the Directorate of Judicial Investigation (DIJ) of the National Police, Javier Carrillo, told ACAN-EFE the drugs were found hidden in a boat with a false bottom. Authorities found eighty packages with a total of more than 2,000 kilos of cocaine on the vessel "Divana" and arrested the crew of the ship, three Colombians and one Panamanian who are under investigation, said prosecutor Victor Quijada. The drug shipment was taken from Colon to Panama City last night and its being guarded by the National Police. Authorities are investigating the origin and destination of the drugs, and trying to determine if there were others involved in this drug shipment.

By Delfi Cortez for La Critica - More than 2,000 kilos (or 2.2 tons) of cocaine were seized yesterday aboard the Colombian boat "Divana" while it was at anchor at pier 5 in the city of Colon. The ship's captain and two crew were detained. In a joint operation between the Drug Prosecutor's Office of Colon and the National Police, authorities detected a double bottom in the boat where 50 large sacks full of cocaine were hidden. The cargo was transported to Panama, escorted by officials of the DIJ and police officers from Colon. The ship was used to buy goods and articles in Colon which were later then resold on various Colombian islands.

La Prensa - BOGOTA, Colombia. (Reuters) .- Colombia's Supreme Court on Wednesday authorized the extradition of a controversial businessman to the United States, accused of swindling millions of dollars from thousands of people and of laundering drug money. With the court's decision the extradition of David Murcia Guzmán, leader of the firm DMG, could occur within days, as soon as Colombian President Álvaro Uribe allows it to go forward. "The Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court issued a favorable opinion of extradition with respect to citizen David Murcia Guzmán, commissioned by the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York to be tried for conspiracy to commit the crime of laundering money," the court said in a statement. For U.S. authorities, Murcia and his partners moved several million dollars of laundered drug money through more than 18 bank accounts in that country. Murcia is confined in a prison in Colombia, after he was arrested in Panama in November 2008 and deported to Bogota. His wife, Joanne Ivette Leon, was released in mid-March in Uruguay, where she was arrested, after the Prosecutor of Colombia desisted in completing extradition formalities. The controversial businessman, whose company DMG raised money from the public by offering as much as 100% return on investment, has plead not guilty to Colombian authorities on charges of swindling money from thousands of people and laundering drug money through his companies. Murcia, through his attorney, said earlier this year that he preferred to be extradited to the United States of America because he was not satisfied before the Colombian courts. (See Comments)

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Panama's Minister of Government and Justice Jose Raul Mulino further clarified their plans to install new new naval bases along Panama's Pacific coast in order to improve their capability to combat drug trafficking at sea. They will build new facilities at Bahía Piña in the Darién province near the border with Colombia, and in Punta Coca in the province of Veraguas. (See annotated photo map below.) These bases will be used as launching points to search for vessels carrying drugs from South America towards Mexico and markets in the United States. Mulino said Panama will install these bases "to continue our commitment to the security of our territory. These bases will be clearly Panamanian which will be used by the different security institutions such as the National Border Service, the National Police, and the Naval Air Service." There was a minor flap yesterday when the news wires picked up the idea that these bases would be built and used by the United States, which is not the case. Panama's Vice President Juan Carlos Varela clarified yesterday that these will be Panamanian bases, built by Panama and operated by Panamanians. The US Navy and Coast Guard assist Panama in patrolling these waters of the Pacific ocean to detect and interdict drug trafficking vessels, as they have been doing for decades. However the specter of any kind of US military presence in Panama causes instantaneous reactions here and the lunatic fringe took the opportunity to spew. With one glance at the image below you can appreciate the positioning of these new bases, strategically placed to help extend the reach of the available surface forces out into the waters of the Pacific.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

TVN Noticias - Police found three heavy bags stuffed full of cash - so much money they have not yet been able to count it all - after chasing two men who were driving a 4x4 SUV for several minutes which they later abandoned in the area of Jardín Olímpico in Campo Limberg. Although the two men have not yet been captured, they transferred the three heavy bags full of cash to the offices of the Anti Drug Prosecutor. Besides the heavy suitcases full of money, police officers also found a 9mm firearm with several clips of ammunition. This seizure of cash came after several people called police to report that in the area of Costa del Este, several men were seen transferring bags from a BMW to a green Prado. The police responded immediately and as soon as the officers arrived the men took off, and the police chase ended in the Jardín Olímpico.

Editor's Comment: In Panama, the drugs go North and the money comes South. Drug trafficking is a two-way street and the drug traffickers have two problems. First they have to get their product to market, and then secondly they have to find a way to both move and manage the proceeds from the sales. There are always bags of cash like this floating around Panama, the product of drug trafficking.

By Grisel Bethancourt for La Critica - The judge of Panama's Sixth Criminal Circuit Court, Rubén Royo, ordered the arrest yesterday of the former Chief of Security of the Mayorship of Panama, Edgardo Reeder Gonzalez. The case against him for drug trafficking charges was initially dismissed, but on appeal that dismissal was overturned and he was sentenced by the Second Superior Tribunal to nine years and eight months in prison. That decision is currently on appeal before Panama's Supreme Court. Reeder accepted that he is a personal friend of the Mayor of Panama City, Bosco Vallarino, and he acknowledged that he was arrested, but says he now leads a clean life. When he was arrested he was a member of the PTJ who had only finished high school, but he says he overcame the obstacles before him and he is now a professional. (Editor's Comment: A professional and a lawyer who still has about five years to serve in prison for trafficking cocaine.)

TVN Noticias - Law enforcement authorities gave another blow to drug traffickers in the country, seizing some 200 kilos of cocaine last night in the area of Las Guías in San Carlos. The packages of drugs were moved to the installations of teh Department of Judicial Investigation (DIJ) where two people who were detained in this seizure remain under arrest. The seized drugs and the two people who were arrested came from the province of Chiriqui, and while they were being checked at a police checkpoint they tried to flee from the authorities, putting the life of a National Police officer in danger. In another operation, police discovered and seized several packages of cocaine in the area of 24 de Diciembre.

Jorge A. Rios H. for Mi Diario - They went straight to him. Javier Sanchez, who worked as a foreman in the Panama Ports Company was shot ten times. Ironically, he was killed at 1:00 am yesterday right in front of the entrance to the cemetery in Pueblo Nuevo, headed in the direction of the commercial center at La Gran Estación. He and three friends were heading home after a day of work. According to information collected by the investigators, Sanchez was in the backseat of a black Nissan Sentra being driven by a colleague when suddenly they were blocked by another car. From there, a man got out and started shooting. A person who was sitting next to Sanchez was also injured. Both were taken to the San Miguel Arcángel hospital, where Sanchez was pronounced dead minutes later. His The companion is out of danger. There were four people in the car but only two were wounded. Police have ruled out robbery as the motive for this crime because there was no attempt to take anything. Sanchez was the father of two children and he lived in the 24th of Diciembre. It is important to say this is the second violent death involving an employee of the Panama Ports Company in less than a year. So far, just this month, 27 people have been shot to death.

By Carolina Sánchez P. for DIAaDIA - He was arrested for carrying drugs. The citizen from the Netherlands, Otwin Adriann Gustina, was arrested at the Tocumen International Airport for having traces of a while powder that is presumed to be cocaine on the clothes. Gustin was arrested as he got out of a taxi. His impatience alerted officers of the Judicial Investigation Department, who then arrested Gustin and took him to the Anti Drug Prosecutor to be investigated. The police checked his clothes and found the substance impregnated in three pairs of jeans and towels. (Editor's Comment: If you come to Panama to party and do drugs, make sure you do your damn laundry before flying back to Europe. Without a doubt this guy was walking by a drug sniffing dog that alerted as he went by - 'woof.' The cops checked him out and found traces of cocaine on his clothes. What a dumb ass...)

La Prensa - Authorities seized 200 kilos of suspected cocaine found inside a small van found on the grounds of the Tocumen International Airport. According to preliminary reports, there have been no arrests for this seizure which occurred in last night. The white vehicle with license plate number 148299, was abandoned at the airport terminal. The vehicle was later removed from the site with a tow truck.

By Yuriela Sagel for the Panama America - Three Panamanians, two Venezuelans and one Peruvian were arrested during the raid which led to international confiscation of nearly five tons of cocaine. The Panamanians were turned over to the Drug Prosecutor's Office and the Venezuelans and Peruvians to U.S. authorities. The operation was performed by participants in the Panamax exercise by troops from Panama, Colombia and the United States. Panama's authorities took control of the nearly five tons of cocaine seized. The drugs were distributed in 210 bags, with an estimated weight of 4,818 kilograms. The drugs were discovered on a Panamanian-flagged ship on Wednesday intercepted by the U.S. Coast Guard in international waters. So far this year, Panamanian authorities have seized over 40 tons of cocaine. From 2007 to date have been 6,050 cases recorded involving drug offenses, of which 1,528 are for drug trafficking. Of the 6,050 cases, most are detected in the province of Panama, 3,343. In recent months, the movement of drugs through the Azuero region has increased.

London (AFP) - Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega on Saturday sent a request to President Nicolas Sarkozy, asking for a Presidential pardon, in a last attempt to avoid extradition to France. Nopriega, 75, is being held in Florida where he served, until September 2007, 17 years in prison for drug trafficking. The former dictator is awaiting the decision on his extradition, requested by France two years ago. French courts in 1999 sentenced him to ten years in prison on various charges, but now they want to hold a new trial for money laundering.

El Siglo - Nine people have been arrested in recent operations. So far this year more than 35 tons of drugs have been seized. In just the past two days law enforcement authorities have dealt a serious blow to drug traffickers by seizing large quantities of drugs in different operations. At sea, the US Coast Guard intercepted the Panamanian flagged vessel "Cristal" 55 nautical miles from Cabo de Vela in Colombia, with 115 sacks of cocaine. Aboard the ship were three Panamanians, two Venezuelans and a Peruvian. Meanwhile, early yesterday morning in "Operation Karla" agents from the Directorate of Judicial Investigation (DIJ) intercepted a small bus carrying 400 kilos of cocaine at a checkpoint in the town of Llano Marín, Anton, in the province of Cocle. Ariel Omar Pinzon, deputy director of the DIJ, said the small Suzuki van with license plate number 927327 was being driven by a 52 year old Colombian who was turned over to the authorities. According to Pinzon the source of the illegal substance in most countries comes from South America, considered the foremost producers of cocaine. It is assumed the 400 seized kilos may have come ashore somewhere along the coast of Cocle. The official said drug traffickers continue to use boats to introduce illegal substances into the country. It was learned the DIJ units tracked the Colombian who realized he was being followed, and he tried to hide behind the slaughter house in Penonomé, but authorities were able to locate the van and the illicit cargo. In yet another operation, authorities conducted a simultaneous bust in Bethania and a residential district in Arraiján, where they seized 85 kilos of cocaine in a building, resulting in the arrest of a Panamanian and a Colombian. The Panamanian had a 9mm pistol and $5,800 dollars in cash as well as a Toyota Rav-4 with license plate number 415605. From the Colombian a Four Runner truck was confiscated, as well as a sedan and $4,400 dollars. Panama's Second Drug Prosecutor Edwin Guardia, explained that in recent operations nine people have been arrested between Panamanians and foreigners.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Obama has made no changes to the annual U.S. list of major illicit drug producers and transit countries. The president is required to make the designation to Congress annually. They were released by the State Department late Tuesday. The 20 countries designated are: Afghanistan, the Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela. Of these, Bolivia, Myanmar and Venezuela were found to have "failed demonstrably" to meet commitments to combat production and trafficking of drugs. That designation can result in U.S. aid cuts, but Obama spared both Bolivia and Venezuela, citing a national interest waiver. (See Comments)

By Michel Marizco, Special the Green Valley News - Court documents in the case of a well-regarded former federal agent who live in Sahuarita paint a picture of a man nearly beholden to a Mexican drug cartel. Richard Padilla Cramer, the resident agent in charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Nogales, five years ago, was denied bond in federal court on Sept. 4. He is charged with trafficking more than 600 pounds of cocaine from Panama to Spain in a complex scheme that moved the narcotics up the eastern seaboard then across the Atlantic Ocean by merchant ship. His alleged arrangements with the cartel suggest a man in need of money but willing to take any task put forward by the cartel leaders, including retiring from his 30-year career as a federal agent in order to dedicate himself to trafficking drugs and laundering cash. Charges filed in a Miami court accuse Padilla Cramer of selling sensitive database queries from ICE and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in Mexico, including one for $2,000. He educated the cartel on how U.S. law enforcement flips informants and the processes behind warrants and record checks. Sometime before he retired from ICE in 2007, a lead figure in the cartel encouraged Padilla Cramer to leave the agency to go to work for the cartel. Federal prosecutors have not identified publicly which cartel Padilla Cramer went to work for. The Gulf Cartel has shifted its drug market to Europe over the past two years but Guadalajara, where Padilla Cramer worked, is under the control of longtime kingpins “El Azul,” Juan Jose Esparragoza, and Ignacio “Nacho” Coronel Villarreal. Eyebrows were raised across both sides of the border in February when Coronel allegedly visited the Ambos Nogales area. Coronel is wanted by the United States, which is offering a $5 million bounty. (more)

By Yuriel Sagel for the Panama America - Employees of the Panama Canal Authority charged between $200 to $700 to provide their identities to people from the Dominican Republic and Colombia so they could travel to the United States. According to the investigations being conducted by the Prosecutor against Organized Crime, ACP officials offered their identity so that these citizens could travel on false Panamanian passports. Attorney Joseph Ayú Prado said they are waiting for the U.S. Consulate of the Embassy of the United States in Panama to provide a list of officials who worked for that entity in Panama from 2007 until today. Authorities from the Panamanian judicial system have held three meetings with officials from the US Embassy in Panama to discuss this case and the ongoing investigations. There are 19 people charged with having been involved in this ring that created false passports. (Editor's Comment: The list of questions I submitted to the US Embassy in this case remain unanswered. For that matter, they have not even had the courtesy of acknowledging receipt. They are obviously in damage control mode at this point. Eventually this information will become public when the 19 people charged are taken to trial. Therefore, the details can only be covered up for so long.)

FOCUS News Agency - Panama City. Panamanian authorities burned eight tons of drugs in a sanitary dump of Cerro Patacon in Panama City on Friday, the National Police (PN) said, Xinhua News Agency informed. Gustavo Perez, the PN director, said that most of the destroyed drugs were cocaine, marijuana and heroine. The drugs, which were seized during the last two weeks, belonged to Colombian and Mexican drug dealers operating in Costa Rica, said Perez He said people may feel safer as a result of their campaign to crack down on drug traffickers. The Panamanian Drugs Prosecutor's Office said the authorities have seized 32 tons of drugs so far this year.

La Critica - Amid a roaring fire and a dense trail of thick black smoke rising hundreds of feet into the air, the Judicial Investigation Department on Friday morning burned eight tons of drugs at Cerro Patacón. The drugs destroyed are the product of several seizures made by different institutions of state security in the past 20 days. So far this year anti-drug agents in Panama have seized about 32 tons of drugs in the country.

DIAADIA - Panama's First Anti Drug Prosecutor, Javier Caraballo, presented a report on the results obtained during recent operations to seize illegal substances. Caraballo said that between 21 August 2009 and 9 September 2009 Panamanian legal authorities have seized approximately eight tons of drugs in the interior of the country and within the capital city. So far this year to date, anti-drug authorities have seized more than 32 tons of cocaine. (Editor's Comment: 32 tons of cocaine has a street value of more than $2.9 billion dollars.)

By Grisel Bethancourt for La Critica - A shipment of 1,000 kilos of cocaine and the arrest of three persons was the result of "Operation Calitina" conducted by the drug unit of the Directorate of Judicial Investigation in the community of Sajalices, in Chame. In the operation one 45 year old Panamanian and two Colombians, aged 43 and 38, were arrested. During the raid police also seized a GMC truck with license plate 422024 and a green pickup truck. The drugs were found in a false floor in the bathroom of the residence. The detainees were taken to the National Police headquarters in Ancon, on orders of the Anti Drug prosecutor. (Editor's Comment: To get the street value, multiply the number of kilos (1,000) times $100,000 per kilo, and you get $100 million dollars for this bust. Huge. And, this kind of stuff is happening almost every day. This is the same bust as the "50 black sacks" in Chame from yesterday. I thought this one was going to be big...)

DIAaDIA - About 50 sacks of suspected cocaine were seized early Monday morning in the area of the district of Espavé in Chame. The National Police were involved in this operation, together with representatives from the Anti Drug Prosecutor's Office. The operation began with tips from the community about the presence of two vehicles that were driving through the area in a suspicious manner, and ended with an exchange of gunfire. Later residents of the area identified the house where the vehicles were parked, and the drugs were found in a hole that had been dug near the bathroom of the residence. Authorities have confirmed that one person allegedly linked to this shipment has been arrested. (Editor's Comment: Fifty "sacks"? The Panamanian press normally uses this kind of terminology when the police seize large bags, each containing about 20 kilos of cocaine each. If this early report is right, and if the sacks are large and contain a lot of cocaine, this could be a relatively large bust. The details on weight should come out during the day today.)

By Adam Aspinall, Sunday Mercury - COPS want to extradite a Brummie criminal mastermind from Panama, where he has been running an international drugs ring by mobile phone from his prison cell. Officers from SOCA, the Government’s Serious Organised Crime Agency, are probing the role of 52 year-old Birmingham gangster Leo Francis Morgan in the plot. Morgan is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence for drugs offences in El Renacer prison – the hellhole which inspired the nightmarish Sona jail in TV show Prison Break. From his cell, by the banks of the Panama Ship canal, he is said to be involved in a cocaine conspiracy which stretches all the way back to the UK. Details of the gangster’s involvement only came to light when undercover SOCA officers smashed a conspiracy to flood Britain’s streets with drugs by notorious Liverpool villain George Moon. It was Moon, 62, who orchestrated the UK end of the cocaine ring from his own prison cell at HMP Lindholme in Doncaster, using a mobile phone to contact Morgan in Panama. Together, they plotted to smuggle cocaine with a street value of £300,000 into the UK. Moon was sentenced to a further 18 years in prison at Liverpool Crown Court earlier this month for his part in the case. (more)

By Efraín Lao Oro for El Siglo - The drugs were bound for Miami. A total of 23 pumpkins stuffed full of cocaine, $12,000 dollars in cash, two boats, and four vehicles were seized early yesterday morning during "Operation Pumpkin" by the Anti Drug Prosecutor of Herrera and Los Santos and the National Police. The Anti Drug Prosecutor of Herrera and Los Santos, Marquel Mora, said the seizure took place in the Panamanian Export Terminal in the neighborhood of Los Rosales of La Villa de Los Santos. He said the drugs, that were destined for Miami in the United States, was hidden inside of pumpkins to fool the authorities, and for this they used electric knives and sealing machines, among other materials. Mora explained there might be some agro-exporters behind this drug trafficking ring. He said that after the raid six people linked to the drugs were arrested, including five Panamanians and one Cuban. Mora said there could be more raids and arrests in the coming days. He said they would be checking to see if there are connections to other seizures made earlier this year. Raul Mora, Chief Sub Commissioner of the National Police in Los Santos, said the police worked together with the Drug Prosecutor's Office to seize the drugs and said similar operations are conducted in the province on a regular basis. It is assumed that in the 23 pumpkins opened yesterday about 25 kilos of cocaine was hidden. Cases of drug trafficking are becoming increasingly common in this area. A week ago, three Colombians who were in a speedboat off the coast of Pedasi, were intercepted on land near the beach of Puerto Escondido, where there was an exchange of gunfire, and one of the Colombians was shot in the leg who later bled to death.

By Diómedes Sánchez S. for La Prensa - Colon - More than 200 kilos of cocaine were seized by the Drug Prosecutor's Office of Colon and Kuna Yala as part of a joint operation with the National Customs Authority (ANA) conducted in a seaport in the area of Coco Solo. The drugs were seized in four containers. Victor Quijada, Drug Prosecutor in this province, said the drugs came from Cartagena, Colombia, and was hidden on a ship passing through Panama and was bound for Europe. Quijada said there have been no arrests yet, but said he has started investigation. Javier Cordoba, head of Customs in Colon, said the papers of the containers were checked. (Editor's Comment: Well, at least they tried, but they blew the math. This is about the first time any Panamanian news publication has tried to get the right street value for this kind of a cocaine shipment in the United States. Lately I've been using a $100,000 dollar street value for every kilo, meaning this shipment actually had a street value of more than $20 million - probably more once it's cut. Another big bust, and another, and another, and another...)

La Estrella - Four Colombians were arrested in a joint operation between the Panamanian National Air Service (SENAN) and the Coast Guard of the United States when they discovered a speed boat carrying 51 packages of drugs 13 miles North of El Porvenir, near the Caribbean coast. According to a SENA press release, aircraft SAN-255 spotted the speedboat during an overflight, and when the occupants of the vessel were surprised they began to throw the packages of drugs overboard into the ocean, and they later set their boat on fire, sinking it. Senan officers remain in the area searching for additional packages of drugs in the ocean. Meanwhile, the detainees were taken to Panama City and turned over to the competent authorities for questioning, interrogation, and investigation. (Editor's Comment: Street Value in the US = $120 million dollars)

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Have you ever noticed there simply does not seem to be a sense of justice in Panama? Take a look at the recent headlines. Bus drivers owe $22 million in unpaid tickets - they have not paid them because they don't want to and no one is forcing them to. Two former ministers have now been charged in a corruption scandal involving the alleged embezzlement of millions of dollars of state funds. There are drug related murders on the streets of Panama daily - so many that I stopped talking about them or covering them because they are basically the same story - "there's a dead guy, he was shot 15 times in a bad neighborhood, there are no suspects, and the police are investigating." Hundreds if not thousands of people poisoned by contaminated medicines. First 18 people burned to death in a bus fire, caused by the removal of safety devices on the bus to force the air conditioner to keep running, and then another accident in which a drunk driver slams his dump truck into a bus packed full of people returning home from work. These are just a few examples of people who seem to have an attitude that "I can do whatever the hell I want, and no one is every going to stop me or hold me responsible for my actions." Let me tell you why... (more)

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - The Government of the United States will be spending more than $83 million dollars in Central America in fiscal year 2010 to fight drug trafficking. From H. R. 3081, "Making appropriations for the Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010, and for other purposes." This bill, which has been passed by the house and is on the calender in the Senate, contains the following: "Assistance for the Countries of Central America- Of the funds appropriated under the headings `International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement', and `Foreign Military Financing Program', $83,000,000 may be made available for assistance for the countries of Central America only to combat drug trafficking and related violence and organized crime, and for judicial reform, institution building, anti-corruption, rule of law activities, and maritime security." Whatever assistance Panama receives from the State Department will come from that pot. Hopefully, the administration of Ricardo Martinelli has people who know how to ask for those funds. If no one in the United States used Cocaine, there would be much less crime and violence in Panama. Most of the murders in Panama are related to drug trafficking are related to drug trafficking in one way of the other.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

Telemetro Reporta - PANAMA (AP). Narcotics agents seized 286 kilos of cocaine hidden inside boxes containing clothing in the cargo area of the main airport which were destined for Mexico. Police said in a statement Friday the drugs were packed in 78 boxes of clothes that were in transit at the Tocumen International Airport and arrived in Panama, from Guatemala on their way to Mexico. He added the cocaine was discovered in the cargo area of a privately owned freight company. Panama, with both Pacific and Atlantic coastlines and bordering Colombia, has been used for decades as a bridge for drug trafficking. In 2008 more than 53 tons of drugs were seized. (Editor's Comment: Are you losing track of the drug busts? I know I am...)