by Rod Hughes
One might say that police vigilance is not exactly fierce in the tiny rural village of Quebrada Ganado, near Tarcoles. The town, of slightly more than 2,000 population, has a station house, but no resident policeman to put in it.
But the last straw fell when drug addicts and alcoholics took over the rundown law enforcement post, residents complained to the daily newspaper La Nacion.
Local businessman Carlos Chaves described the level of cop’s attention to the paper this way, “Once in a while a policeman will come on a motorcycle, turn around and go off again. We need a permanent cop here.”
The director of the local school, Lisbeth Mora, complains that some of her 323 students are often bothered by alcoholics and drug-addled persons as the students go and come from school. “This concerns our teachers and parents,” she said.
Regional police chief Mario Calderon says he’s doing the best he can by sending a policeman to the village when he can. “Everybody knows our lack of personnel,” he said.