Lic. Mario Cerdac Salazar has been detained six times for operating a marijuana grow house on his terrace – within sight of the Alajuela Courthouse. He has never been to prison. He will now attend a hearing on November 4 th ,   according to the Supreme Court of Justice’s weekly bulletin. Cerdas has long been a self-proclaimed advocate of recreational marijuana use, something many expats also enjoy in Costa Rica.

In 2018, the Costa Rica Supreme Court decriminalized both cultivation and possession of small personal quantities of cannabis (usually less than ¼ ounce). However, selling weed or large-scale cultivation and possession of it remain illegal under Costa Rican law. It was ruled that cannabis use was not a threat to public health, and thus not a punishable crime. Costa Rica ranks #6 in Latin America for the percentage of the population that identify as frequent pot users.

Cerdas is considered a hero among marijuana aficionados and is credited for challenging the marijuana laws that were overturned in 2018. He spent five months in Preventive Detention, and was denied bail during those months. On August 8, 2019, the Narcotics Unit of the Judicial Investigative Agency (OIJ) led a narcotics sting operation at Cerdas’ home and office, hoping to capture evidence against him in their 6th attempt to make their case against him stick.

The current case against Cerdas was opened on December 21, 2018, when the Alajuela Deputy Prosecutor’s Office alleged that Cerdas had planted marijuana on his property, a mere 100 meters from the courts. He stands accused of selling pot in four ways: root seeds, leaves, fruit and oil. The raid by police seized 12 marijuana plants, 2 kilos of seeds, 8 kilos of cryptos, as well as weed stems and leaves. Also seized were an oven, fans, lamps, and electric equipment suspected of being used to convert the
pot into different presentations.

Neighbors reported that he allowed only a few select people to enter his house, presumably so as not to reveal the true nature of his grow house. Alvaro Gonzalez Quiros of the Prosecutor’s Office said in 2019,“During our investigation, it is found that this person (Cerdas), according to the police hypothesis, used as a ruse to sell certain roots of marijuana plants to cover up his larger activity, so that after our investigation we determined that he was in fact, dedicated to the sale of narcotics.”

Cerdos claimed at the time that his grow house was his hobby, and that the weed was for his personal use. He said, “Anyone who is interested in growing (marijuana) is aware that they can do it as long as it is for personal use, and that trading in weed could mean legal problems.” He added, “I defend, and I want people not to lose sight, that the right to agriculture, in accordance with our legal system, constitutes our absolute freedom.”

At this time, authorities claim to have sufficient evidence to accuse Cerdas of the possession and sale of narcotics, although they have been unable to win against him on numerous other occasions. It seems that the courts have met their match with this accused marijuana user. His case will set an example for pending and future marijuana court cases in Costa Rica

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