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By Wendy Anders
Panamanian National Police announced Thursday they are offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the recapture of an escaped prisoner awaiting trial for the alleged killing of five Chinese students in Chorrera, reported the digital English media Newsroom Panama.
Gilberto Ventura Ceballos, a Dominican national, escaped Dec. 28 from the La Joyita penitentiary.
Police Director Omar Pinzón described Ventura Ceballos as “highly dangerous,” said Newsroom Panama.
He is one of the people accused in the kidnapping and murder of five young people in La Chorrera between 2010 and 2011.
According to Pinzón, Ventura Ceballos “likes to disguise himself.” He has previously gone by the names of Angel Betancourt and Fermín Taveras in an attempt to thwart justice, said reports by Newsroom Panama.
However, police asked for people to be on the look out and help with any evidence that could lead to his re-arrest. They said he can be readily identified by a scar on his upper left arm, according to Newsroom Panama.
At the end of December outraged friends and relatives of the five Chinese-Panamanian youths, some of whom were murdered and some buried alive between 2010 and 2011, staged a protest on the streets of Chorrera denouncing Ventura Ceballos’ prison escape, reported Newsroom Panama on December 31, 2017.
The protestors, with banners held high and dressed in white, appealed to the judicial authorities to expedite the recapture of the suspected murderer, said the news report.
An initial reward of US$25,000 was offered by police for information leading to his arrest, and, in the absence of his re-arrest, the reward amount has been doubled, added Newsroom Panama.
Ventura Ceballos was extradited from the Dominican Republic when authorities confirmed his identity in November 2011; he had alleged fled there after the murders in Panama.
