Desperate Martinelli takes the bait, files wacky libel complaint

A look into the future.

The best you can hope for, if you're in the news business, when exposing fraud artists, corrupt politicians, drug traffickers and money laundering presidents is that they panic and start some sort of legal action. This inevitably raises the profile of the case, attracts lots of attention, spreads the word like wildfire, triggers additional investigations and forces other actions, such as arrests of the culprits and things like that. Believe us. We've been there.

Of course it was only a matter of time before short-fused Martinelli and his government of muñecos de la mafia would take the bait that Costa Rican online paper El País has been dangling in front of their noses for over a week now, publishing allegations that connect Martinelli with money laundering, drug trafficking and wholesale corruption. And, yes! Martinelli took it hook, line and sinker and announced today that he would start legal action against the publication.

Don't believe for a moment that this is in any way a smart move, dear reader. A communique from the Presidency stated that the paper would be sued because "Panama has been defamed, and the publications threaten the national security of Panama and the Panama Canal". Good luck proving that in court.

Hopefully, the Costa Rican system includes what is in the US known as "discovery". That way, the Ticos could accomplish what Panama's "journalists" aren't even trying; the publication of Martinelli's campaign finances.

The delusional statement on Martinelli's website can be found here.

UPDATE: La Prensa reports that Carlos Salazar of El País is utterly unimpressed by Martinelli's announcement. "They think they can threaten journalists in Costa Rica just like they do in Panama", Salazar commented, "but they're never going to intimidate us".