A 59-year-old Israeli man, Lita Jake, was deported from Costa Rica Monday, October 23, 2017 due to his alleged ties with the criminal structure led by the murdered Lebanese, Elías Akl.

Akl was assassinated May 15 in Escazú, Costa Rica at the front entrance to a private school in Guachipelín.

Police have continued to investigate those connected with Akl, and have made other arrests since his death. Two men were arrested in September for extortion related to the money-lending operation headed by Akl.

The structure created by Akl – and which was run by Lita Jake – involved making cash loans to small business owners and taxi drivers at high interest rates. When the debtors delayed in making payments, they were sought out by thugs who demanded they make payments using threats and physical attacks, according to police reports.

Lita Jake, who first entered Costa Rica in 2011, was captured Monday afternoon in the center of Escazú for allegedly being the leader of the criminal structure established by Akl in Costa Rica, according to the Migration Police.

Jake was in the process of applying for temporary residency in Costa Rica, and when his case was under review by immigration authorities, they rejected his petition and referred his case to the Migration Police who proceeded to arrest him.

Migration authorities accompanied the Israeli to Israel, and handed him over to the police.

After the May 15 shooting at 7:30 a.m. when school children were readying for classes, police have upped their investigations of foreigners in Costa Rica and have deported several with criminal records.

According to Deputy Director of Migration, Esteban Obando, deportations made by the Migration Police are practically doubling those in 2016 when 393 people were deported.

As of September this year, a total of 554 deportations have been made.

The arrest of Lita Jake was thanks to a coordinated “mapping operation” in which the Ministry of Public Security, the Judicial Investigation Agency, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Directorate of Migration and Foreigners, and the Directorate of Intelligence and National Security all shared information to track him down.

Foreigners in Costa Rica involved with drug trafficking, human trafficking,organized crime, sexual crimes, and violent crimes are very likely to be deported from Costa Rica.