Nicaraguan Opposition Figure in Exile Denounces Assassination Attempt in Costa Rica

Reinaldo Picado Miranda, a former Contra member and prominent Nicaraguan opposition figure now living as a refugee in Costa Rica, has reported being the target of an assassination attempt. Managua has requested his extradition, accusing him of the murder of a police officer and a civilian.

Picado Miranda, also known by his alias Commander Omar, stated that the incident occurred recently in the province of Cartago. He described how a man emerged from a vehicle, aimed a firearm at him, but the weapon malfunctioned when the assailant attempted to fire. This malfunction provided Picado Miranda an opportunity to struggle with the attacker, ultimately allowing him to escape as the assailant fled in a waiting vehicle.

The 53-year-old former Contra member, who has previously been imprisoned in Costa Rica and received precautionary measures from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), has filed a report with the Judicial Investigation Agency of Costa Rica (OIJ). Nicaragua's Public Ministry has sought Picado Miranda's extradition for the same case that led to the accusations against opposition figures Douglas Gamaliel Pérez Centeno and Pedro Javier Fernández Sandoval, both of whom are also facing extradition requests or are refugees in Costa Rica.

Nicaraguan authorities allege that Picado Miranda, along with others, is responsible for the deaths of officer Aracelly Marisol Díaz Salinas and civilian Pedro Pablo Chavarría Rivas. These deaths allegedly occurred on October 1, 2022, in El Castillo, Río San Juan department, near the Costa Rican border. According to Nicaragua's police, the group was involved in a robbery with intimidation targeting employees of Agro Industrial del Río who were transporting payroll funds.