Panama - Two men were sentenced to 12 and 5 years in prison after it was proven that they had committed the crimes of aggravated rape and illegal possession of a firearm, respectively.
The 12-year sentence was applied to a 35-year-old man from the Guna ethnicity for raping a 13-year-old minor in the Guna Yala region, located on the Caribbean coast. From there, the Guna Yala Municipal Personería initiated the investigation. Units of the National Border Service (SENAFRONT) moved to the community to carry out the arrest of the accused in August 2025.
In the hearing, this subject opted for a plea agreement, accepting his guilt for the crime of rape against the minor. This sexual act occurred in June 2025, when this adult sexually abused the minor. After the attack, the minor filed a complaint, was taken to a forensic doctor, and after the exams were performed, the rape was confirmed and that the aggressor had transmitted a sexually transmitted disease to him.
Meanwhile, Yamal Vergara (27 years old) was sentenced to 64 months (5 years and 4 months) in prison, through a plea agreement, for the crime of illegal possession of a firearm, after the Section against Collective Security and the Economic Order of the Regional Prosecutor's Office of Colón and Guna Yala managed to prove his involvement in an event recorded on the Atlantic Coast.
In the hearing, this person accepted his guilt for the charged crime. The Court of Guarantees also imposed the accessory penalty of prohibition from carrying firearms for the same term as the main sentence, once it is served.
It all began on the afternoon of January 11, 2026, in the San Judas neighborhood, located in the district of Cativá, when the sentenced man was surprised by agents of the National Police with a firearm, two magazines (chargers), and 34 compatible ammunition, inside a car, without having a legal carry permit.
