25 Witnesses Testify in Costa Rican Human Organ Trafficking Case

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The case of four medical doctors and a Greek businessman suspected of running an illegal organ trafficking operation out of Costa Rica is moving forward.

The Office of the Prosecutor Against Organized Crime (FACDO, its initials in Spanish) cited 25 witnesses to appear in court to testify in the case.

The Costa Rican Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) and Public Security Ministry uncovered the case in 2013, which led to the arrest in July of Dr. Mora Palma, former head of nephrology at one of San José, Costa Rica’s main state hospitals – the Calderón Guardia. He is believed to have led the international organ trafficking operation.

Later, in October 2013, three other doctors were arrested in connection with the case, all of whom were also affiliated with the Costa Rican Social Security Agency (CCSS), which runs the country’s public healthcare system.

Courts began hearing evidence on the case early last year. The public trial is slated to begin September 11, and is scheduled to last until November 30, said the prosecutor’s office.

The other three doctors accused of participating in harvesting organs from poor people and selling them on the international black market for human organs are Mauro Stamati, Fonseca Guzmán and Monge Monge. A Greek businessman of surnames Katsigiannis Karkasi is also facing charges related to the case.

Investigations into the case have uncovered 14 individuals who were paid between 3 and 10 million colones (roughly $5,000 – $18,000) for an organ. Most cases involved kidneys, and the procedures were carried out at state facilities run by the CCSS. Some of these individuals have since experienced health problems as a result of giving up one of their vital organs.

The main recipients were Israeli citizens who paid large sums for the organs, and who came to the country to undergo transplant operations.

The New York Times published an extensive report on the case in August 2014.

So far, what prosecutors have revealed is that Mora Palma as leader of the operation, located foreign clients who required kidney transplants. He also sought out low-income people to offer money in exchange for a kidney. He coordinated the extractions and subsequent transplant surgeries. After being held for four months in pre-trial detention, he was released on bail after paying 100 million colones.

The others, Mauro Stamati, a urologist, Fonseca Guzmán, a surgeon specialized in urology, and Monge Monge, a surgeon, all allegedly performed the transplant surgeries in two private hospitals in the capital were arrested October 10, 2013 and released with restraining orders.

Katsigiannis Karkasi, a Greek businessman and owner of a pizzeria near the Calderon Guardia Hospital aided by recruiting low-income individuals and offering them cash in return for extraction of an organ. He was also arrested October 10, 2013, and released with restraining orders

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