Eduardo Macea, alias Marshall - one of the most wanted criminals in the country - captured on March 12, is regarded by police and judicial authorities as the capo of drug trafficking in Colón. and responsible for a wave of violent crimes that shook the province.

 Macea is credited with controlling routes for cocaine trafficking to Europe through container ports in Colón.

The authorities also link Macea to the murders of members of a rival gang controlled by Jaime Powel, alias Yunya.  in a dispute over drug trafficking routes:

The authorities estimate that the disputes between Marshall and Yunya have left about 30 dead between members of each side.

Macea is confined in Panama’s maximum security prison, Punta Coco. and his His lawyers are seeking to get him moved from the local Alcatraz The Superior Court judges rejected the appeal

 Macea, was captured along with one of his henchmen in the parking lot of a luxury apartment building in Isla Naos on the Amador Causeway.

The territorial war between the two gang leaders  -unleashed an unprecedented wave of crime and violence in the province of Colón

Marshall and Yunya joined the organized crime worlds as adolescent killers in  90s-, under Vicente Blanford, alias Juancín -whose whereabouts are unknown-, who recruited them for the transfer of drugs through of the ports in Colón.

After operating under Juancín's shadow, Macea created a route for cocaine trafficking. His first shipment, five kilos of drugs, went to Europe. Yunya did the same through the Colón ports using a business facade to move his cargoes.

Marshall and Yunya learned from Juancín and each one formed their "cuadrillas" with port workers to become masters of the cocaine routes to Europe. Over the years, the three carried out their illegal activities without problems, and even "rented" routes between them,

In 2014, war broke out between Macea and Yunya, after the former was arrested and jailed in Colón for gang crimes and murder.

While behind bars several of Macea's gang moved to Yunya. This sparked the fury of Macea, who vowed promised to assassinate those who had betrayed him.

Four years later, the Third Criminal Court of Colón dismissed the case against the capo. The Public Ministry appealed the decision, but the case has not yet been sent to the Second Court reports La Prensa.

Marshall left prison and, according to police authorities, fulfilled his promise to end the lives of those who had betrayed him. Upon his release, a series of murders occurred in several sectors of Colón

In 2018, the province of reported a total of 91 homicides and a rate of 26.2 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest of all the provinces.

In December, clues clue emerged that led police intelligence to suspect that Macea  was behind some of the murders.

Among them, the murder of Felipe Alarcón, alias Filin, on December 21, 2018; and Aníbal Cortés, nicknamed Miami, three days later.

Filin, who was one of the men closest to Macea was killed while traveling in his car to Portobelo. He was shot from another car.

For its part, Miami, designated as Yunya's right-hand man, was killed when driving his vehicle on the Panama- Colón highway on a  bridge over the Chagres River.

In June of last year, Yunya was captured in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and deported to Panama

A few weeks ago, the First Criminal Court of Colón issued a provisional dismissal in favor of Yunya. The prosecution appealed the decision and the process is also pending in the Second Superior Court.

An elite intelligence unit kept track of people closest to Macea and was struck by an unusual entry and exit of cars from a luxurious building on the Amador Causeway, where apartments are valued at $500,000.

The elite unit trascked an Acura van one of several that regularly entered the building and that always moved at high speed on the road to  Amador.,

On March 12, agents in an unmarked car followed the van and when it was near the Fish Market on Ave Balboa

it slowed down and agents identified, Macea through the smoked windows. Meanwhile half of the elite group was at Tocumen International waiting for the capo’s wife to arrive.  

The police decided to follow the truck, which headed in the direction of the Amador Causeway. Near Friday's restaurant, the undercover police car rammed the truck and Macea's cronies opened fire. In the chase that followed the police  car was  hit by multiple shots. At the building in Naos policemen arrested an armed man  patrolling the building who led them inside

 Macea and gang members were arrested before backup officers arrived.

Macea was brought before a judge of guarantees, who legalized his apprehension and validated the charges for drug trafficking and gang-related charges of the Organized Crime.prosecutor.

On March 15, he was transferred to the maximum security prison on Punta Coco Island for  criminals considered the most dangerous

Authorities discovered that the security of the building where Marshall was hiding was operated by a clandestine agency that hired Nicaraguans, Salvadorans and undocumented Venezuelans,

It transpired that all the guards of the building carried nine-millimeter caliber pistols.

The administrator of the building was the mother-in-law of one of the men captured with Macea.

Canadian killed
The clandestine agency was directed by Carlos Boyd, who was prosecuted for the murder of Canadian businessman Scott Jhon Barton, in 1995.

According to the summaries of that the Public Ministry at the time, Barton was allegedly killed to rob him of a Submariner-type Rolex watch, with an approximate cost of $18,000, which was later recovered in a pawnshop.