Under Arrest for Charging up to $3,000 for Illegal Migrant Crossings

Panama: Two Panamanians, alleged members of an international organization dedicated to the illicit trafficking of migrants and money laundering, were apprehended early this morning as part of Operation “Coyote 507”.  The operation was carried out by the Second Specialized Prosecutor’s Office against Organized Crime and units of the Directorate of Judicial Investigation (DIJ) in the district of San Miguelito and in the township of Pedregal, where the arrests took place, and also in the province of Darién, with the support of the international organization OUR RESCUE. 

The investigation into this case began in November 2025 against an organized group dedicated to receiving, facilitating, and financing the entry and exit of migrants from Venezuela, Ecuador, Cameroon, and China through the Darién border with Colombia, the Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed. To date, the Prosecutor’s Office has identified nine people—including two minors—as victims of migrant smuggling.  This criminal group charged each victim up to $3,000 for a crossing from Colombia to Panama and vice versa.

Payments were identified as originating from Venezuela, Ecuador, Cameroon, and Australia; from transit countries such as Colombia, Panama, and Costa Rica; and from the destination country, the United States.  The service included boat trips from the Gulf of Urabá to the Panamanian Caribbean or to Colombia, as well as passage through jungle trails, transport in canoes, and vehicular transportation to or from Panama City.  Within this process, two people have already been arrested and charged with the crime of illegal trafficking of migrants.  The people arrested today will be placed under the orders of a Guarantee Judge for the due hearings of legalization of arrests, imputation of charges and application of precautionary measures.