Media owner files complaint alleging interference by Costa Rica's president in custody dispute

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- A banker and media owner said Tuesday he had filed a legal complaint against Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves, alleging that his administration interfered in his child custody dispute.

The animosity between Chaves and the complainant Leonel Baruch, who owns online news site CR Hoy, is well known.

Baruch's complaint, which alleges influence trafficking by the president and top officials, is one that any citizen can file, and does not necessarily lead to any charges.

The dispute came to light when the former head of Costa Rica’s child welfare agency, Gloriana López Fuscaldo, claimed she had received a phone call from Chaves’ chief of staff, telling her the president wanted her to “rule well” on the custody case.

López Fuscaldo later went to neighboring Panama, claiming she feared for her safety.

Chaves did not immediately respond to Baruch's complaint, but said López Fuscaldo could return at any time.

“I just want to tell Gloriana that she can return with the assurance that nobody is going to do anything to her, she should stop making things up," Chaves said.

Chaves has previously called reporters from CR Hoy “political assassins,” and his administration briefly tried to bring a tax evasion case against one of Baruch's companies.

Chaves began a four-year term as Costa Rica’s president in May 2022. There have been about 18 such legal complaints filed against his administration, all of them reportedly still open.