A group of 120 prisoners awaiting trial or already convicted on money laundering and drug trafficking charges have been moved from the relative comfort of the Renacer (Renaissance) prison to the La Joya ( The Jewel) and La Joyita (Little Jewel) jails, notorious for their overcrowded conditions.

The transfers do not not include businessman Jean Figali says government minister Roxana Mendez.

"The Figali case is different. He is being investigated for an alleged crime, but has not been condemned," said Méndez.
Figali has made several attempts to be moved from Renacer to house arrest, but all of his requests have been turned down by the courts.

The minister, said the aim is to move all those accused or convicted of drug trafficking. from the Renacer to the other jails.
The planned moves were supported in May by President Ricardo Martinelli. when dismissing the then director of the Prison System Diomedes Kaa, whom he accused of failing to meet transfer quotas.

After the President's order, the defendants in the case of the narco network of Pablo Rayo Montano, and the Colombian Jose Nelson Urrego, charged with money laundering, were taken to La Joya and La Joyita.
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