Costa Rica has opened a new mega-prison as near-record homicide levels and growing organised crime put security at the top of the political agenda. President Laura Fernandez opened the High-Containment Centre Against Organised Crime, known as CACCO, on Wednesday.
The facility will hold 5,100 people, roughly 20 percent of the country’s current prison population. Its opening comes as governments across the region adopt police crackdowns that have proven popular but often weaken key civil liberties.
Fernandez pledges a tough-on-crime prison model
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Fernandez said the CACCO “will force criminals to face a new model” and that Costa Rica would become a global benchmark for prison security.
Justice Minister Gabriel Aguilar said the first transfers will take place at the end of October. He said the facility would help the government regain control of the prison system and reduce infiltration by organised crime.
Latin American candidates look to El Salvador’s model
Long spared the high levels of violent crime seen in neighbouring countries, Costa Rica recorded 905 homicides in 2023, 876 in 2024 and 873 in 2025. Analysts say part of the trend is driven by increased fighting between criminal groups over lucrative drug routes.
Candidates across Latin America have sought to replicate the policies of Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, whose mass arrests and suspension of basic rights have won him wide popularity. Peruvian President Keiko Fujimori has announced plans to tour El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Centre (CECOT), in anticipation of a similar facility in her country.
In Colombia, newly elected leader Abelardo de la Espriella campaigned in part on a pledge to build 10 mega-prisons. In Brazil, right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro has advanced to the final round of the presidential vote, with a platform that includes five mega-prisons.
Rights concerns over El Salvador’s state of exception
El Salvador first imposed a “state of exception” under Bukele in 2022, expanding police and military powers. Rights groups credit the emergency with a sharp drop in homicides but say it has led to severe abuses and has been used against government critics.
Mass arrests and mass trials have resulted in rulings against hundreds of defendants at a time, and some have been detained without charge. Although the government frequently touts its success against gangs, it has continuously extended the state of exception since it was first imposed.
Critics warn that conditions inside mega-prisons are often poor, with overcrowding, due process violations and alleged torture reported in facilities such as CECOT.
