Panama Pacific Beach Crime Wave - Mounting Emotions

A recent violent crime wave through Panana’s Pacific Beaches has the expat community in the area up in arms. Over the past 2 months, there have been a number of home invasions effecting expats that have resulted in violence against home owners. The recent beating and rape of an elderly expat couple has angered many.  One fraction, affected by the crimes and frustrated by the ineffectiveness of the police is calling for a show of numbers at the Coronado Police Station on Wednesday, January 5th at 3pm. Some people fear that the demonstration could lead to further violence and make matters worse than they currently are. Another fraction is working hard to find solutions to this mounting problem before things get out of control. They have drafted an Open Letter to the President of Panama, in hopes that this situation gets taken seriously.

People are conerned about rumors that the criminals are known, but nothing can be done about them. The word on the street is that these crimes are coming from a gang of thugs who work with plumbers, electricians and other home workers to gain information on houses. In one case, police detectives at the scene of a shooting, collected bullets, blood evidence, pieces of torn clothing and named suspects. However 5 weeks later, the police are unable to press charges. Understandably, the expat community is scared and angry and calling for action.