World's Most Colorful Lawyer Caught Smuggling Coke Into Prison
All lawyers seek to serve their clients zealously, but some really go the extra mile. Take, for example, the recent case of Senor Ruiz Zuniga, a Costa Rican defense attorney. Mr. Ruiz was recently caught smuggling 142 grams of cocaine to a client in prison -- via his anus. That's about enough cocaine to fill half a Coke can. Pura vida, indeed.
Ruiz isn't the first lawyer who has been tripped up by drugs. There's, of course, the Connecticut lawyer who dropped his weed in the middle of court. Neither can we forget the California attorney arrested on meth charges when he came to court up to defend a client. But Ruiz is one of the few lawyer-cum-drug-mules that we've encountered.
Special Delivery
Ruiz was busted when visiting a client at the San Sebastian correctional facility in San Jose, Costa Rica's capital. Ruiz was already under surveillance as part of an investigation into phone smuggling inside the prison. When he arrived to meet with his client, correctional officers were tipped off by "the strange way he moved while walking towards the attorney/client meeting room," according to the Costa Rica Star, which picked up the story from the Spanish language Diario Extra.
Officers stormed the room, rubber gloved and ready for a cavity search, only to find that Ruiz "had already excreted the package," presumably in front of his client.
That's Quite a Resume
Drug smuggling is the least of Ruiz's many talents and not just because he got caught. He is also director of the legal offices for the University of Costa Rica and a former agent for the Office of Judicial Investigations, according to Diario Extra.
Ruiz appears to have a scrappy side as well, which may serve him well when fighting his drug charges. As a law enforcement agent, he was accused of shooting at another officer during an argument. In 2010, when participating in a student protest, Ruiz led students in hand-to-hand combat against undercover police officers.
Oh, he's also an ex-felon who once belonged to a gang of car thieves called "Bam Bam." In fact, Ruiz learned the law while in prison. Perhaps he will pick up another trade the second time around?
Related Resources:
- Lawyer Arrested With A Whole Lot Of Cocaine Hidden In A Very Uncomfortable Place (Above the Law)
- Calif. Lawyer Gets 6 Months for Planting Drugs in PTA Mom's Car (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- Former Federal Judge Gets 30 Days for Helping Stripper Buy Drugs (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- Disbarment Over Cuban Cigars: IL Attorney Smuggled Smokes in the 90s (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)