Costa Rican authorities have arrested Alejandro Arias-Monge, a 41-year-old man known as Diablo and wanted by the United States on drug trafficking charges.
The arrest occurred Friday after an hourlong struggle that left six federal agents injured, one of whom remains in serious condition. Two additional suspects were taken into custody and high-powered firearms were seized during the operation.
Arias-Monge had a $500,000 bounty placed on him last year by the U.S. State Department. The Drug Enforcement Administration identified him as the leader of a transnational criminal group that smuggled narcotics from Colombia through Central America to Mexico and ultimately the United States.
Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Organization described the operation as an example of efforts to eradicate crime. Local reports indicate Arias-Monge had been a fugitive since 2016 and faced multiple arrest warrants in Costa Rica.
