Costa Rica Holds Ex-Model in Drug Money Case
COSTA RICA · CRIME
Key Facts
- —What is happening Costa Rica’s judicial police arrested former model Chonta Mullins at San José’s main airport on Friday, 23 October, on suspicion of laundering money for a drug network.
- —Why it matters The network is allegedly led by Edwin López Vega, alias Pecho de Rata, whom Costa Rica extradited to Texas on 20 March to face US cocaine charges.
- —The numbers The file lists a registered salary of about US$628 a month, but two properties worth about US$333,000 in tax value and a 2019 Lexus.
- —Who is who Mullins is the former partner of López Vega’s reportedly unacknowledged son. The OIJ is Costa Rica’s judicial police, and a special prosecution unit handles money laundering.
- —What to watch Whether prosecutors seek pretrial detention, as they did for López Vega’s wife, and what a Limón judge decides on her custody.
- —Power Index Costa Rica ranks 9th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 36.5 points (October 2026 edition).
- —What it means for you US readers who buy property or invest in Costa Rica should know prosecutors say drug money reached ordinary assets, and US courts are now trying Costa Rican suspects.
Costa Rica arrested ex-model Chonta Mullins on suspicion of laundering drug money for a network tied to a boss extradited to Texas. She has not been convicted.
Costa Rica’s judicial police arrested former model Chonta Mullins at San José’s main airport on Friday, 23 October. Prosecutors suspect her of hiding drug money for a network allegedly led by a man extradited to the United States.
That man, Edwin López Vega, known as Pecho de Rata, was extradited to Texas on 20 March. He faces US cocaine charges, and federal prosecutors say an indictment is only an allegation.
What Happened at the Airport
Agents of the Interpol office in San José made the arrest at Juan Santamaría airport, Teletica reported on Friday. La Nación says she was held on arrival from Switzerland and handed to the OIJ, which passed her to prosecutors.
The OIJ, short for Organismo de Investigación Judicial, is Costa Rica’s judicial police. Teletica says she returned voluntarily after seven months in Zürich, having left on 23 March, three days after López Vega’s extradition.
Mullins appears in the “Riverside” case file as an alleged front person, or testaferro, who held assets for the group. Teletica says the file also names her a suspected co-author of the laundering.
Her lawyer, Gregorio Briglia, told La Nación she returned voluntarily and the arrest follows OIJ protocol when a capture alert exists. La Teja reported on 20 October that he says she took no part in the network; she has not been convicted.
The Wealth Prosecutors Question
The file lists a 2019 Lexus in her name, and prosecutors say her assets do not match her income. It also lists a Honda motorbike at a tax value of CRC 790,000 (about US$1,730), La Nación reported.
Two properties, in San José and Limón, carry a combined tax value of CRC 152 million (about US$333,000). Her salary reported to the social security fund is CRC 286,608 a month (about US$628).
Prosecutors say the Lexus came as payment of a CRC 15 million debt (about US$32,900). The seller, Autos Álvarez S.A., Jonathan Álvarez Alfaro and the notary were linked to a separate laundering inquiry, Venus, the file says.
Álvarez Alfaro, known as Gato or Profe, is wanted in extradition by the United States, La Nación reported. The police report says this alone does not prove any unlawful act by Mullins.
Conversions use the exchange rate of 24 October 2026, about CRC 456 per US dollar. The amounts are tax values in the registry, not market prices.
How the Case Links to the United States
Costa Rican prosecutors and the OIJ launched Operation Riverside in late June with over 100 raids. They targeted the alleged network of López Vega, which La Nación says ran drug trafficking and money laundering.
Federal prosecutors charged López Vega in East Texas on 11 June 2025 with conspiring to distribute cocaine bound for the US. He was extradited on 20 March alongside Celso Gamboa, a former security minister charged separately, Fox San Antonio reported.
They were the first Costa Ricans sent to the United States since a May 2025 constitutional change allowed it. Diario Extra, citing the US Attorney’s office, says López Vega’s pretrial hearing is set for 8 January 2027 in Sherman, Texas.
Teletica reports the United States also seeks Kedward Vaz Mc Leod, her former partner and a son of López Vega. La Nación calls him an unacknowledged son, but no source reports a US charge or arrest request against Mullins.
What Happened to the Last Woman Held at the Airport
Jeydi Smith De La O, López Vega’s wife, was arrested at the same airport on Sunday, 30 August, after returning from Switzerland. Prosecutors asked for a year of pretrial detention, Teletica reported.
The Limón criminal court instead freed her on three conditions, her lawyer Andy Jack Sánchez told Diario Extra. She must sign in every 15 days, hand over her passport and stay in the country.
She is investigated for money laundering and unlawful association, and her lawyer says her 17 June departure was a family visit. Briglia told La Nación a hearing on precautionary measures will follow in Limón, and no decision has been reported.
What It Means for US Readers
Prosecutors describe suspect money turning up in ordinary purchases such as a car and homes, the kind a foreign buyer might make. Investors and expats in Costa Rica should expect closer checks on where funds come from.
The case also shows US courts handling Costa Rican suspects, after the extraditions of March, August and 1 October. The US cocaine market is the destination the Texas indictment names.
Background is in earlier Rio Times reports on Operation Riverside and on a recent arrest in Guanacaste. The guide to Costa Rican politics, the economy guide and the San José city page add context.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether prosecutors will ask a judge to keep Mullins in custody, or when a hearing will take place. Her formal charges and her own account of the assets are not in the reports.
The Justice Department release could not be opened. The Texas charges rest on Fox San Antonio, and the hearing date on Diario Extra.
Outlets differ on whether she is a daughter-in-law or a former partner of the son, and only Teletica gives her age, 30. La Nación and CRHoy report different Lexus values, so this article states none.
What Comes Next
A court must decide on her custody and conditions, as it did for López Vega’s wife. Diario Extra reports his US pretrial hearing is set for Friday, 8 January 2027, and none of this is a conviction.
In Plain English
- Chonta Mullins: a former model arrested on suspicion of laundering money; she has not been convicted.
- Pecho de Rata: the nickname of Edwin López Vega, an alleged drug boss from Limón facing charges in Texas.
- OIJ: Costa Rica’s judicial police, which carries out arrests and raids.
- Riverside: the code name of the June raids and of the case file against the network.
- Testaferro: a front person who holds assets in their own name for someone else.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Chonta Mullins?
She is a former model from Limón who took part in a 2024 beauty contest, Teletica and La Teja reported. Prosecutors name her as a suspected front person in the Riverside case.
Why was she arrested?
Prosecutors suspect her of money laundering for the network of López Vega. Her lawyer says she returned voluntarily and took no part, and she was held at the airport on Friday, 23 October.
Who is Pecho de Rata?
He is Edwin López Vega, an alleged drug trafficker extradited to Texas on 20 March. He faces US cocaine charges, and federal prosecutors say an indictment is only an allegation.
Is the United States involved?
The US charged López Vega in Texas, and Teletica says it seeks his son. No source reports that the United States requested Mullins’s arrest or charged her.
What happened to his wife?
Jeydi Smith De La O was arrested on 30 August and freed with conditions, her lawyer said. Prosecutors had asked for a year of pretrial detention.
Sources: La Nación, 23 October; Teletica, 23 October; Diario Extra; CRHoy, 19 October; Teletica, 1 September; Diario Extra, 23 October; Fox San Antonio, 23 March; exchange rates, open.er-api.com (all accessed 24 October 2026).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief