FORMER Colombian Security Director María del Pilar Hurtado, who was stripped of the asylum granted by Panama in November 2010, apparently left Panama a month ago and moved to Costa Rica.
Colombian radio station Blu Radio reported her new location as part of its story on a meeting yesterday between presidents Juan Carlos Varela (Panama) and Juan Manuel Santos (Colombia) held in the Panamanian capital.

At the meeting, Santos asked Panama to grant its extradition request for the former security director, who is wanted on charges of ordering illegal wiretaps of opposition members, journalists and judges. Varela said Panama will act according to the law, but also said the whereabouts of the fugitive were not known.
Lawyer Ángel Álvarez, who submitted the lawsuit that led to the asylum being declared unconstitutional by Panama’s Supreme Court, also indicated that Hurtado is in Costa Rica. "The possibility that she left Panama is very high," he said.
Álvarez said immigration officials failed in this case. "They should have checked on her location," he said.
Immigration officials did not respond to La Prensa requests for comment.
If the timetable presented by Blu Radio is correct, Hurtado would have left Panama shortly before the change in government. She was granted asylum under President Ricardo Martinelli,