Ketamine is an anesthetic for veterinary use that is now being used as a drug by young people. It is alarming that from 2017 to the first quarter of 2019 seizures of that drug in the country increased 30,000%.
It is a controlled substance in Costa Rica, with Senasa periodically checking the records kept by veterinary clinics. Still, in Nicaragua one can easily buy as much of it as they want completely uncontrolled.
On April 22, the police seized 200 flasks, with 100 doses in each. Then on April 29th, an officer of the Public Force was arrested with 200 bottles of it at the Peñas Blancas border post.
Ketamine has been seen as a window of opportunity for small traffickers because of not needing a large logistics deployment and not having the same risks as cocaine. Storing, transporting, distributing or manufacturing ketamine is punished with eight to 15 years in prison.
