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Karol Vega remembers a time when her neighbors would spend long evenings outside together, laughing and listening to salsa music as they shared ceviche. Then crack cocaine started flooding this Costa Rican fishing town — and dealers began competing for turf. As young men were gunned down in succession — one while playing soccer, another while buying a lottery ticket, yet another while pedaling his bike — most residents stopped leaving their homes after dark. Vega begged her year-old son, Kedwin, who had started selling drugs, to stay off the streets. In December, she was at home when a friend arrived, breathless, to report that Kedwin had been shot in the head and killed. For so long, Costa Rica was an island of peace in one of the most turbulent regions in the world. While other Central American nations suffered civil wars , vicious street gangs and corrupt leaders , Costa Rica had low crime, a thriving democracy and no armed forces. Each year, millions of foreigners come to enjoy its pristine beaches, jungles and laid-back ' pura vida ' vibe. But as violence has risen steadily here over the last decade — accelerating sharply during the last year — there is a growing sense that the nation of 5. The rise in violent crime comes amid a backdrop of growing inequality, high unemployment and an erosion of investment in education — a major shift in a country that long prided itself on its strong middle class and on producing 'students, not soldiers. Read more: The president of Honduras was supposed to be a drug war ally. He said the rapid growth of the drug trade and its attendant violence have been a source of soul-searching for many Costa Ricans, who are taught at a young age about their nation's exceptionalism. And how are we going to get out of this? At school, Vega's teachers had taught her that Costa Rica was 'a place of peace and tranquility. In , Costa Rican President Jose Figueres stood before the nation's military headquarters and bashed its wall with a sledgehammer. Figueres, who had just led a guerrilla army to victory in a civil war, announced he was abolishing the armed forces — an act he viewed as a safeguard against the military coups that had so often derailed Central American democracies. Not having to fund a military meant Costa Rica could invest more in health, education and environmental protection. In the ensuing decades, the country boasted some of the highest standards of living in Latin America as well as some of its lowest crime rates — two phenomena that its leaders insisted were linked. Congress in Read more: The pandemic plunged millions of Latin Americans into poverty. Young people are inheriting the consequences. But in recent years, as Costa Rica weathered the global economic crisis and then the COVID pandemic , funding for education and social programs fell sharply. Poverty rose, and a gap widened between the prosperous capital of San Jose and more neglected regions on the country's Pacific and Caribbean coasts. For a long time, shipments of cocaine merely crossed through Costa Rican waters on their journey from Colombia to the United States, with traffickers paying locals cash to help refuel their boats along the way. But starting about a decade ago, as drug profits became increasingly tricky to launder, traffickers started paying with product. There was plenty of it: Since , the amount of cocaine being produced in South America has more than doubled, according to the United Nations. Costa Ricans now entered the business of trafficking, smuggling drugs onto shipping containers packed with bananas and pineapples bound for the U. And they forged a new domestic drug market, employing out-of-work teenagers as dealers — including in Chacarita, a town of 26, on the Pacific coast. Kedwin, who dropped out after seventh grade because his family couldn't afford his bus fare to school, started selling drugs a few years ago, his mother said. It paid much better than the only other work he could find, cleaning a restaurant after it closed for the night. His gang of dealers got into a beef with another. That's when the killings started. The majority of the victims were like Kedwin, said his mother: 'They're just little boys. Little boys with guns. While that is lower than the rates in Venezuela, Honduras and Mexico, it is more than double the U. Read more: Dream interrupted: As gang violence soars in Mexico, migrants in U. Officials say gangs of professional assassins carry out gruesome killings, such as the seven people executed this year on a ranch, or the decapitated body found floating in a marsh, or the drug boss shot to death while dropping off his daughter at school. Security Minister Mario Zamora Cordero said such incidents are part of what he calls the 'Mexicanization' of crime. Local criminal groups have traded handguns for automatic rifles and adopted the brutal methods associated with drug cartels in Mexico, he said. Polls show that violence is now the top concern among Costa Ricans, and some have questioned whether the country can continue to uphold its ideal of nonmilitarization in the face of such grave threats. Many see a cautionary tale in nearby Ecuador, another once-peaceful country that in a short few years has become excessively violent , in part because of a deluge of cocaine. Read more: Anti-corruption presidential candidate in Ecuador is assassinated at campaign event. Although few here propose the creation of an army, many have criticized the government of President Rodrigo Chaves for what they see as a tepid response. Chaves has proposed changes to the judicial system — to allow prosecutors to charge minors accused of homicide as adults and to make it easier to tap the communications of alleged gang members. He has also authorized the hiring of new police officers, adding to the country's relatively small force of 13, But without a military, the government lacks the force to engage in the kind of direct armed confrontation with criminals that is seen in many other countries. A group of speedboats were returning to shore after a day at sea. Many were steered by fishermen bringing back the day's catch. Others, the police said, might well be carrying cocaine. But the police were not there to chase down and inspect the boats — just to act as a visual deterrent. Eventually, the speedboats disappeared into the mouth of a river that snakes through the city and the police trucks pulled away. Zamora, the security minister, said there are plenty of examples in the region of why militarization is not the answer. He pointed to Mexico, where the government's war on cartels from to failed to reduce drug trafficking and unleashed a bigger wave of violence that did not spare civilians. Read more: Mexicans are killing each other at record rates. The U. If even the U. But others have begun clamoring for harsher security policies, with growing calls for a crackdown similar to the one conducted in El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele , who has dramatically lowered crime by rounding up tens of thousands of suspected gang members with little concern for due process. Alpizer pointed out that at the time of the killing, a police cruiser had been stationed nearby, yet officers didn't intervene. Despite a heavy police presence in her neighborhood, she said, nine young men including Kedwin have been killed here over the last year. Sign up for Essential California for the L. Times biggest news, features and recommendations in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. After offering its customers free adapters for Tesla's Superchargers, Ford is telling its customers to stop using them. That's not great for a broadcaster. Alabama fans are dealing with a whole new reality this season. Texas fans are coping after the Longhorns' first loss of the season. Week 8 brought with it a new outlook for many teams after a surprising Saturday of action. Which of them will remain unscathed and which will stumble? What, you're surprised that Nvidia's stock is crushing it again? Try these health and wellness tips to live your best week. UCF defensive back Braeden Marshall thought he had a pick-6 touchdown against Iowa State, but dropped the ball before crossing the goal line. Oregon moves into the top four after its win over Ohio State. Davante Adams is done with the Raiders after two-plus seasons in Las Vegas. The former North Texas coach was in his first season running the OU offense. Blind Auditions continued in Week 2 of the reality singing competition as one coach hits the show's powerful new button. The best high school competition from around the country gathered in Vegas for three days of high-level games. Tiant won games with six teams in his year MLB career. The Mets had a magical run into October, but they have some big decisions to make this offseason. Asked about the toughest duos he has faced at the top of an opposing lineup, Clayton Kershaw paid the Houston Astros a compliment but then took a swipe. Newman remained down on the sideline for several minutes after sustaining a neck injury. He reportedly has movement in his limbs. Selected edition. Sign in. Close this content. Read full article Kate Linthicum. A young girl takes in a police roadblock in Chacarita, Costa Rica, where violence has skyrocketed in recent years. Karol Vega in the bedroom that belonged to her son, Kedwin, 17, who was shot and killed in December in Chacarita, Costa Rica. Soccer practice is held at a park alongside the beach near an entry point along the Rio Cieneguita where fishing boats carrying illicit drugs enter the small town from the Caribbean Sea. Costa Rica police officers question a motorcyclist at a roadblock. At the main port, the installation of state-of-the-art scanners has led to large drug busts in recent months. In Chacarita, Costa Rica, most residents have stopped leaving home after dark. A bike peddles in front of the store where Kedwin Cordero Vega was shot and killed. Attorney Miguel Alberto Diaz Vega. He was shot and killed in December View comments. Recommended Stories. Yahoo Sports. Yahoo Finance. Yahoo Life. Yahoo TV.