Wanted Expat Finds Freedom in Costa Rica.

Yesterday, July 31, United States citizen Chere Lyn Tomayko was freed from a Costa Rican prison where she had been awaiting extradition since September of 2007. Tomayko was a nurse originally from Dallas Fort Worth, Texas and moved to Costa Rica over 11 years ago after a Texas judge awarded joint custody of Alexandria her 8 year old daughter to both Tomayko and Robert Cyprian, Alexandria’s father and Tomayko’s former boyfriend.

A year after the court had reached its decision in 1997 Tomayko relocated to San Jose, Costa Rica with nine year old Alexandria to reportedly escape Cyprian’s abusive behavior. Shortly after her move Tomayko was added to the FBI and Interpol’s top 10 most wanted list for International Parental Kidnapping.

Tomayko has since married a local Costa Rica doctor named Javier Hunter and given birth to now 8-year-old Ana Sofía and 5-year-old Ariana Nicole who were all extremely ecstatic to hear the news of their mother’s release after 10 long months without her presence at home.

Costa Rica and the United States established an extradition treaty in order to create a more effective cooperation between the two countries in the repression of crime and extradition of fugitives from justice. The Treaty of Extradition between the United States and Costa Rica was signed in San Jose, Costa Rica on Dec. 4, 1982 and roughly states that any law shared by both countries is grounds for extradition. This means that if the country the charged party is living in does not have the same law regarding the crime committed, the party does not have to be extradited.

The penal judge in charge of ordering Tomayko’s release, Carlos Salazar Chinchilla of Heredia, Costa Rica, said that the reason it took longer than expected to order the release was due to his decision to await the verdict of the Costa Rican Sala Cuatro. This governmental body is the head of judicial branch and plays the role of the Supreme Court, determining whether or not verdicts and other legal decision are complacent with the Republic’s Constitution. The Sala Cuatro announced that the refugee status of the mother of three had been approved on Thursday afternoon.

Janina del Vecchio, Costa Rica’s Security Minister stated that the domestic violence complaints filed by Tomayko that were used as her reasoning for fleeing the United States were deeply considered during the decision making process regarding her asylum.

Despite the relief of being free once again, Tomayko’s fears have not been completely eliminated. Although she will no longer fear extradition and even jail time in the United States, she still fears for her safety and most importantly that of her three daughters. Tomayko thanks the Costa Rica government and people for their support as even the President, Oscar Arias, believes that Tomayko’s situation was a very important human rights issue and is even quoted saying that her release is “wonderful news”. The U.S. Embassy was not in agreement and announced that they find the Republic of Costa Rica’s decision to release and grant asylum to a member of the FBI’s most wanted list very “disappointing”.

Many find it extremely surprising that two nations that worked together so closely before in order to establish strong ties and cooperation regarding extradition and criminal issues such as these are representing two totally different sides of the spectrum. The question remains if disagreement and lack of cooperation on Costa Rica’s part will cause damage to the relationship between the two countries that hold otherwise close economical and political ties. On the other hand, it looks as if at least one family will celebrate a very happy mother’s day which is right around the corner in Costa Rica on Friday August 15, 2008.

Photo courtesy of La Nacion.

This post's rating:

Related Stories

Filed under: Costa Rica News on August 1st, 2008