Officers from the National Coast Guard Service of Costa Rica recently arrested a fugitive tour operator who was wanted on a murder charge. According to official press release CP-1518-2015 from the Ministry of Public Security (MSP), the arrest took place in the coastal community of Quepos earlier this week.

The MSP press release explains that officers assigned to the Coast Guard Station in Quepos were conducting routine safety boardings in the Pacific coast when they encountered the suspect, who operates a sports fishing boat that he uses to take tourists offshore. These routine boardings have increased over the last few weeks due to an influx of anglers who arrive in Costa Rica to take advantage of the catch season for certain species.

In this case, the Coast Guard officers approached the motor vessel as it was heading out to sea from one of the marinas in Quepos. The boarding started with the usual check of boat registration, safety equipment, permits, and documents. Upon closer inspection of the identification documents carried by the boat captain, who goes by the last name of Marchena, the officers realized that he was a fugitive.

According to the MSP, Mr. Marchena was investigated and charged with murder by a Criminal Division Court in the Osa canton a little over a year ago. At the time of his arrest, Mr. Marchena was engaged as a tour operator; he had a crew member aboard as well as two tourists who were eager to engage in SCUBA diving. Alas, the boat captain was discreetly taken into custody and the vessel was secured by the crew member and the tourists disembarked.

The motor vessel has been identified as the Orca IV, registration number P 10388. All required permits were up to date and the Coast Guard officers did not report any safety violations.