Sebastian "Guachan" Gonzalez was a charismatic and intelligent smuggler who worked for the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] since 1983 as the Panamanian quartermaster for all the Costa Rican [[Contras|Contra]] armies, arranging supplies and deliveries from Manuel Noriega's armed forces. He was "a personal friend of Manuel Noriega since high school years. His job was to manage the arms flights from Panama to the [[ARDE]] forces in Costa Rica," ARDE commander [[Eden Pastora]] said.[^1] ### Drug and Arms Network A 1998 CIA Inspector General's report confirmed that as early as 1984, the agency had information tying [[Norwin Meneses]] to a drug and arms network in Costa Rica operated in partnership with Gonzalez. A 1984 CIA cable from the Costa Rican station to headquarters stated that Meneses and another trafficker, Tuto Munkel, "were involved in drug trafficking with Sebastian Gonzalez Mendieta in Costa Rica. . .It was reported that Meneses owned a restaurant in which Gonzalez might have had a financial interest." The cable reported: "Meneses, Gonzalez and Munkel were well-known as the 'Nicaraguan Mafia,' dealing in drugs, weapons smuggling and laundering of counterfeit money."[^1] Former assistant U.S. attorney [[Eric Swenson]] confirmed that the Justice Department was also aware of Meneses's Contra activities because he had personally reported them.[^2] ### Wiretap Evidence Gonzalez was a wanted man in Costa Rica after he and UDN-FARN's logistics chief were caught with 600 grams of cocaine in a house in [[Guanacaste Province]]. He fled to Panama, where he lived under Noriega's protection. Costa Rican police wiretaps on the phones of drug trafficker [[Horacio Pereira]] captured Gonzalez calling from his Panama hideout. During one conversation, a caller mentioned that Gonzalez was building a cocaine processing lab in Panama and was kicking back $20 million a month to Panamanian authorities.[^1] ### M-3 Movement After breaking with Pastora in 1983, Gonzalez started his own Contra movement called M-3. In a 1990 interview, Gonzalez said Pereira had offered him money to help finance M-3 but he rejected it "because Norwin Meneses and [[Troilo Sanchez|Troilo Sánchez]] were involved in drugs. They were close to [[Aristides Sanchez|Aristides Sánchez]]." [[Robert Owen]], Oliver North's Costa Rican emissary, reported to North that Gonzalez was "now involved in drug running out of Panama."[^1] ### Significance Gonzalez's partnership with Meneses represented a direct link between Contra leadership and narcotics trafficking. The CIA's knowledge of this partnership meant the agency was aware of drug trafficking within Contra ranks at a time when exposing such connections would have been politically devastating. Gonzalez was in charge of Panamanian logistics for both ARDE and [[UDN-FARN]], giving him a central role in the Southern Front's supply chain.[^1] ### Footnotes [^1]: Gary Webb, *Dark Alliance*, Chapter 11: "They were looking in the other direction" [^2]: Gary Webb, *Dark Alliance*, Chapter 10: "Teach a man a craft and he's liable to practice it"