QCOSTARICA — In the early hours of this Tuesday morning, the Fiscalia (Prosecutor’s Office) and the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ) carried out 21 raids, and arrested, among others, the former MOPT Minister Mauricio Batalla, the president of the National Emergency Commission (CNE), Alejandro Picado and director of Civil Aviation, Marcos Castillo, in the case nicknamed “Pista Oscura”, related to an allegedly irregular contract for the improvement of the Guanacaste Airport runway in Liberia, in 2023.
Not on the raids list is former MOPT Minister, Luis Amador.
Following the work of judicial officials, Amador’s defense attorney expressed optimism regarding the direction the prosecutor’s office and the OIJ’s investigation is taking into the case.
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“Don Luis has not been identified as one of the people linked to the raids being carried out today in that case, much less one of the people being detained in any way by the prosecutor’s office (…) Seeking to detain Luis Amador under these conditions would be absolutely inappropriate because it must be remembered that, unlike the other defendants in that case, Luis Amador already gave a statement last year, because from the first moment he learned of the existence of the case, he requested an appointment to testify,” Huertas said.
On March 12, 2024, President Rodrigo Chaves fired Amador for allegedly allowing a customized contract for the MECO company to repair the Guanacaste Airport runway. The former official is being investigated for alleged ideological falsehood in this regard. Amador currently lives in Canada, where he teaches.
Meanwhile, Amador’s successor, Mauricio Batalla, was arrested this Tuesday morning.
The raids took place in Curridabant and Pavas, as well as in Oreamuno in Cartago and Santa Barbara de Heredia, including homes, the office of the MOPT (Ministry of Public Works and Transportation) and Conavi, and the construction company MECO.
According to the judicial police’s thesis, the CNE requested that the Executive Branch include the canton of Liberia in an emergency decree to address the damage caused by the effects of tropical waves 11 and 12 and Tropical Storm Bonnie, which affected the northern region and not the Guanacaste area in 2022, according to Randall Zúñiga, head of the OIJ.
This allowed bidding processes to be processed under the emergency regime. The contract for the runway repair was awarded to the company Meco.
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The initial bidding amount was around US$40 million, but after value engineering, the project increased by US$4 million. The OIJ investigation focuses on this increase, alleging corruption.
After the project was awarded, the construction company proposed applying “value engineering,” claiming that it wasn’t necessary to intervene in certain underlying layers, as they claimed they were in good condition.
This approach analyzes materials, processes, and designs to identify areas where costs can be reduced.
Initially, the head of the executing unit objected, which led to pressure from the detainees, according to the OIJ. Eventually, the individual was replaced, allowing for the approval of the value engineering and the subsequent contractual modification in favor of the contractor.
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Batalla resigned from his position earlier this year to run for president in the 2026 elections but later decided not to do so due to the revelation of sexual harassment allegations against him.
“We hope that these actions taken today by the prosecutor’s office imply that the investigation is somehow being directed where it truly belongs, which is not toward Luis Amador, but toward the National Emergency Commission as the competent authority,” Huertas concluded.
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