Scanning for Drugs At the Costa Rica Port of Moin

There is a new scanner in operation at the Moín Megaport. It will be used to find drugs in containers. There was a halt in its use because of a dispute between the government and the terminal administrator but as of now all trucks must pass through it.

The scanner costs $2.6 million. It’s been here since February, delayed over who would pay for the adjustment of images so they can be viewed from a Remote Inspection Center in San José.

Last May, a shipment of 1.6 tons of cocaine easily travelled from Panama through Costa Rica, through the Moín terminal and to Holland, where authorities found it in a banana container. 

Then in August, Costa Rican officials seized 240 packages of cocaine when they checked a warehouse with a container carrying honey tins headed for Belgium.

Now, with each and every truck passing through the scanner, it will be unlikely that drugs continue to go through Moín.