By Saray Ramírez Vindas of the A.M. Costa Rica staff

Immigration officials will give a second look to expats here who already have residency. They will be looking for persons who are sought for crimes elsewhere but still managed to slip into Costa Rica and acquire residency.

This was the word Tuesday from Mario Zamora Cordero, the new director of the Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería.  He said that immigration officials will crosscheck current residents against international wanted  lists. If it appears that someone obtained residency here even though they had a criminal past elsewhere, Zamora  said that his department would re-examine the residency process to see who approved the documents and what documents were approved.

Applicants for residency here have to provide fingerprints as well as a statement from their hometown police that they have not been involved in criminal activity. However, some applicants have been able to duck these requirements, immigration officials fear.

Zamora’s comments came at a press conference where immigration officials said a housecleaning already was underway.

The most visible of the actions to crack down on immigration problems came Tuesday night when police from several agencies showed up at the La Uruca immigration facility. They were there to put an end to the practice of selling places on line to passport applicants.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday immigration officials accept passport applications from Costa Ricans, but only 500 persons are handled each day. The line begins forming late the previous evening.

An industry had developed of people blocking out a number of spaces and then selling these to latecomers. Zamora said the going price was about 25,000 colons a place, or about $50.

These were not a handful of entrepreneurs. Immigration officials said that more than 350 persons were involved in extorting money from passport applicants and threatening them with physical violence if they did not pay.

The Fuerza Pública, the Policia Municipal, the Policía de Migración and Tránsito officers from the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes were involved in the nighttime cleanup.

Officials said that when police arrived, the waiting line for passports already was 100 meters long, nearly 1,000 feet.  After police checked the credentials of each person, the length shrunk to 25 meters, they said. The line forms in the immigration complex parking lot.

The people who hold places are called gavilanes or hawks. Zamora said this activity will not be permitted in the future although what these people do is not listed as a crime.
One gavilán Tuesday night had 25 meters of the waiting line staked out. Others were holding similar spaces to sell to individuals who arrive for a passport transaction Wednesday morning.

The police action Tuesday followed actions against individual immigration workers who may be involved in internal corruption. Zamora said he was certain that foreigners are using doctored Costa Rican identity documents around the world.

Zamora said that immigration also is considering doing more work with the Imprinta Nacional once contract obligations with other firms expire. This would include producing blank passports. Plus there are plans to use more technology, he said.