At the request of the Homicide and Personal Integrity Crimes Section of the Metropolitan Area, provisional detention has been applied to a woman for the crime of personal injury. The incident occurred on January 6, 2026, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Education (Meduca) in Panama City. Additionally, the minister stated that following the incident, it was learned that the same woman had threatened the school director's life. Curiously, as Molinar recounts, as soon as the police arrived, the woman began to scream that she was a psychiatric patient and therefore they could do nothing to her. "If she had already threatened the school director and came to the Panama City headquarters with a corrosive substance to harm someone, we have a dangerous person who cannot be in a school," Molinar stated. The woman has injuries to her back, arms, face, scalp, and skull, and specialists are evaluating possible skin grafts, as the consequences could be permanent. The woman who threw caustic potash at a Ministry of Education official has been placed under preventive measures, the Public Ministry reported on X. Following this case, Meduca admitted that it must strengthen access controls and security for public service in regional offices and administrative buildings. Regarding this incident, Education Minister Lucy Molinar stated that it involved "a person who was separated from her position who came with a product, which they say is corrosive, to harm the human resources person in Panama City; we had to call the Police," Molinar said last Tuesday. Although there were active protocols in the school where the aggressor previously worked, upon arriving at the regional office, she was not immediately identified as the same person who had made previous threats. This case adds to other serious incidents that keep the education system under scrutiny: investigations for sexual assault, sanctions against administrators who tried to cover up complaints, and the detection of false documents in appointment contests. The attacked official, despite the burns, attended the hearing; her condition is stable, but the medical situation is not simple. According to Molinar, the aggressor managed to hit the official, who was hospitalized. This security gap ended in tragedy.
Woman Arrested for Attacking Official with Corrosive Substance in Panama
A woman who threw a corrosive substance at a Ministry of Education official in Panama has been arrested. The victim was hospitalized with severe burns. The Ministry has acknowledged the need to enhance security measures in schools.
