Bocas Unidos Foundation

Remember Jim Morales? Jim Morales is a woman who wanted to sell 35 hectares of land on Cayo de Agua. She's absolutely illiterate and has never signed any document in her entire life. She owned 90 hectares of land on Cayo de Agua and intended to sell 35 hectares to Cirilo McSween Jr. for $100,000. And, her intent was to simply move her family inland and to keep the other 55 hectares for her family. She did not expect there would be a problem because apparently the foreigners only were interested in the land near the ocean.

Surprise, Surprise: To her shock and astonishment, Cirilo McSween's lawyer, a woman named Carmen Silva, returned to the island months later accompanied by (then) Regional Director of the Catastro (Tax) office of the Ministry of Economy and Finances Roberto Prestan and a few boatloads of National Police officers. These people had apparently created some paperwork to steal the additional 55 hectares of land from Jim Morales, and she was evicted from the land.

Nothing "Illegal or Immoral": I contacted Cirilo McSween Jr. and spoke to him about these allegations. He denied all knowledge of this activity, and said specifically that "we have done nothing illegal or immoral" on Cayo de Agua with regards to land purchases. At the time I really didn't believe him. I called the document allegedly signed by Jim Morales the "Bocas Miracle" because this woman has never signed any document ever, in her entire life. Supposedly she had signed away her rights to the other 55 hectares.

Coming Full Circle: It now appears that the great majority of the flat-out bullshit going on in Bocas del Toro can be traced directly back to this lawyer, Carmen Silva. Every time I flip over a rock, there she is. Carmen Silva was Dario VanHorne's lawyer in Bocas until she sold him out (apparently, according to Dario) and he lost his rights to Wild Cane Key. Carmen Silva is the lawyer for the Gaslin family, those who took the ten hectares of land from Veronica Castillo on Isla Solarte. Carmen Silva is the lawyer for the Schwart family, who convinced Panamanian Circuit Court Judge Manuel Ramón García Vargas to recognize an old title on Wizard Beach in Bastimentos, creating a three-way conflict between Jerry Wheeler, Cinco Cruces, and the Schwartz family.

Prestan is Off The Books: As far as I can tell Roberto Prestan is no longer a government employee. He was sent "on vacation" when I first published several months ago, and now I can't find him on any government payroll, anywhere. So unless I'm told otherwise, I think he's gone.

Carmen Silva as Lightening Rod: Now, it seems that the primary person who is running around creating all of this muck is Carmen Silva. She (of course) will argue that she is just representing the interests of her clients. But their modus operandi now includes a judge, specifically Panamanian Circuit Court Judge Manuel Ramón García, who decided to recognize a land title from 1917 in favor of the Gaslin family, and Eric de Leon Gaslin just happens to work in his office. And like I said earlier, practically everywhere I look this Carmen Silva lawyer keeps coming back up like a bad burrito. I'm at the point now where I'm convinced she's involved in some way or another in almost all of the recent conflict that's been going on. Of course, more digging to do.

"How Does That make Me The Bad Guy?" In my investigations into conflicts between Red Frog and Cinco Cruces, as well as stories of land being stolen from players big and small, one of the significant elements has been intentional misdirection. For example, when Veronica Castillo's family was evicted from Isla Solarte the workers who went to the island to supposedly tear down her father's house told her they were working for Cinco Cruces de Oro. I tracked that down and discovered that, in fact, the eight workers who went in a boat to Isla Solarte on that day were working for Carmen Silva. They just lied and told the Castillo family that the entire action was being done on behalf of Cinco Cruces de Oro, which has turned out to not be true.

A Dude Named Batista: In investigating this whole deal I went to Isla Bastimentos and spoke to a guy named Batista who is a foreman for Carmen Silva. He's basically a "fixer" kind of guy - the person she calls when she needs something done. He is currently in charge of the gang occupying the property supposedly owned (now) by "S.O. Real State S.A." on Wizard Beach. On 8 November 2007, Carmen Silva went to Isla Solarte accompanied by the Judicial Secretary (who works for Panamanian Circuit Court Judge Manuel Ramón García) to enforce Garcia's decision to evict the Castillo family. Carmen Silva called her thug Batista, who then sent over eight workers in a boat with orders to tear down the structures on the island. When these guys arrived and saw Veronica Castillo and her father, they refused to tear down the structures. They knew it was not right, but they told Veronica Castillo that they were (supposedly) working for Cinco Cruces.

Wheels Quickly Coming Off: All of this bullshit is going to come to a stop. Now all of the primary players with the big money who want to invest in and develop Bocas del Toro - specifically frank delape from Six Diamond Resorts International, Scott Harris and Joe Haley from Red Frog, as well as the family of Cirilo McSween (Sr. and Jr.) are talking to one another. In fact, it now appears that corrupt local officials and unscrupulous lawyers have been actively working to pit one against the other, to create confusion in the middle, to steal as much land as they possibly can from poor indigenous Indians, and to "earn" as much as possible for legal services and real estate commissions - even if the deals are bad.

Back To "Why Am I The Bad Guy?" Because when I go to the islands and talk to the "victims" they almost always have someone they blame for their problems. And, they know that the lawyers are in the middle, but the natural tendency is to put the blame directly on the "money man" behind the lawyer and corrupt local official. So, when I go stomping around the islands people simply hate Cinco Cruces de Oro, Red Frog, or Cirilo McSween when in fact it now appears that the primary actors behind those organizations are relatively ignorant of the actions being taken on their behalf and in their names.

A Privilege and and Honor: It was my pleasure to have had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Cirilio McSween Sr. on the phone. Quite literally my only intent was to give him and his family a "heads up" as to what's currently going on in Bocas del Toro and the things that are being done in his name. I also passed him the contact information for the primary guys from Cinco Cruces and Red Frog. If they are all talking to one another (without the lawyers) then they can compare notes and figure out reality.

Now, Somebody Else Will Sue Me: So what? Sooner or later truth and reality will come out of the other end of this tube as long as I keep squeezing. In the meantime the pressure may be causing a little localized discomfort which is just an unfortunate byproduct of the necessary process. What's crystal clear is that Panama as a nation can no longer be negligent in their management of land ownership issues, especially when the total potential value of all development in Bocas del Toro could eventually be billions of dollars. Right now, the investors are getting screwed over, and the little poor Indians are getting flat-out screwed.