The President of Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla has been wrapped in scandal this week after reports came out alleging she used a plane owned by a man under investigation for drug trafficking. As a result, three high profile figures close to the President have resigned.
The head of intelligence and security Mauricio Boraschi and one of the President's aids, Irene Pacheco, both stepped down on Thursday. On Wednesday, Francisco Chacon, the communications minister also resigned, the BBC reports.
Each person close to the President stepped down for failing to protect the President and conduct complete background checks on the man who arranged the flights for President Chinchilla.
Reuters is reporting that the office of the attorney general in Costa Rica is now investigating the flights the president made to Peru and Caracas. They are looking to see if the president broke the law by traveling on the plane.
"Costa Rica has no presidential plane so Chinchilla usually flies on commercial airlines or uses aircraft provided by other governments when making state visits," says Reuters.
The plane President Chinchilla took was owned by Gabriel Morales Fallon, a Colombian man who is under investigation for drug trafficking. It is alleged that Fallon has ties to a Brazilian drug lord, Luis Carlos Ramirez.
News.iafrica.com says the president blamed the "chain of lapses" on her aids, saying they did not properly do their jobs and investigate the man booking the plane. When Fallon introduced himself to the president he was using a fake name.
President Chinchilla met with President Obama of the Unites States earlier in the month. During their meetings Chinchilla spoke about how important it is to stop drug trafficking in the U.S. and Costa Rica.
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