Previous Next Close Gallery

Rafael Percival P.

Picture 1 of 2
Previous Next Zoom Picture

Santo Domingo. - The airplane stolen from La Isabela International Airport (AILI) in Higüero was flown out of the country by two foreign pilots linked to drug trafficking, allegedly helped by Army lieutenant John E. Percival Matos, according to the investigation thus far.

The case is the latest involving members of the military in drug scandal, which include former Army captain Quirino Paulino, the Navy officers in the Paya, Bani murders of seven Colombians, Army colonel José Amado Gonzalez in the Puerto Rican kingpin Jose Figueroa Agosto, among others.

The twin turboprop property of the resort group Puntacana flew toward Venezuela, according to Las Americas International Airport’s air traffic control radar.

Percival Matos, son of retired general Rafael Percival Peña, was arrested Tuesday, said Airport Security Corp and Civil Aviation (CESAC) spokesman Fidel Sanchez. Percival Peña was also arrested on charges of drug trafficking, but rejoined the military in 2001 as a lieutenant colonel.

Investigators said the junior officer helped the plane’s thieves by hiding to wait for the airport to close in hangar 26, of the company Aerointer, where his wife Ginsellys Halversoni Vásquez had worked for three weeks. He then refueled the Cessna King Air 200 with fuel stolen from another craft in hangar 16 of the company Santo Domingo Motors.

Percival Matos was reportedly paid as much as US$350,000 to help steal the plane valued at 2.5 million dollars.

Security agencies determined that an airport sentry heard an aircraft at 3:00am Sunday and went to check the hangars along with an official of the airports management company Aerodom, and then the watchmen of the hangar of the carrier SAP radioed that they had heard the sound of a plane in the back part of the facility

The plane took off with its lights and those of the runway turned off, but the control Las Americas tower detected it after it had set course for South America.

At 8:30am that same Sunday a Puntacana employee reported the theft of the plane registry N871C.

Percival Matos was arrested yesterday and sent to Police headquarters for interrogation by the commission in charge of the case, headed by the CESAC, the Dominican Civil Aviation Institute (IDAC) and other agencies.

The suspect is reportedly the brother in-law of retired lieutenant colonel Jose Miguel Gonzales Vanderhorst, serving time in Najayo prison on a drugs conviction.

Share / Recommend this article: FacebookFacebook Digg thisDigg this del.icio.usdel.icio.us TechnoratiTechnorati YahooYahoo Facebook
COMMENTS
13 comment(s)
Written by: Slick, 26 Oct 2011 8:15 AM
From: Dominican Republic
$250,000 would make most any low level military guy think about it at least, don't ya think?
Written by: gmiller261, 26 Oct 2011 8:16 AM
From: United States


"Another major scandal rocks Dominican military"

How many scandals do there have to be before they are disband?

They are just another form of corruption.
Written by: generoso, 26 Oct 2011 8:27 AM
From: United States, Quisqueya
Editor;
My info says he got US$350K, so check your sources.

Written by: Atabey, 26 Oct 2011 8:36 AM
From: United States, NYC
"The suspect is reportedly the brother in-law of retired lieutenant colonel Jose Miguel Gonzales Vanderhorst, serving time in Najayo prison on a drugs conviction."

Keeping it all in the family. DR needs to weed out these cretins and redouble efforts to bring wholesale changes to the military. Smaller and better paid with lots of training and above all else OVERSIGHT!!!
Written by: Yucahu, 26 Oct 2011 9:22 AM
From: United States, Miami
Dang 350GRAND!!!??? I think we can all say that our mouths would get wet or moist at even the mentioning of that amount of bread.
Written by: WalterPolo, 26 Oct 2011 9:41 AM
From: Dominican Republic, Puerto Plata
So it was the military? Gosh I thought only David Copperfield could pull off a stunt like that.

That'll help the country's ratings on Transparency International and the like.
Written by: Circibana, 26 Oct 2011 10:10 AM
From: United States
This is the icing on the cake. The guy was kicked out of the military for being involved in drug trafficking then allowed back in. Who in their right mind could not foresee that he was going to be involve in some sort of shenanigans. Crap no matter how you dress it up is still crap. DR will never be taken seriously and will always be considered a banana republic until it gets it's act together.
Written by: rumbabierta, 26 Oct 2011 10:52 AM
From: United States
ok this is just boderline crazy a guy with that history !!??? untill you line them up and blow their brains infront of other army, navy , air force officers and explain that if they keep deshonoring our nations principal witch they are been entrusted with , that those are the consequences it wont stop, talk about needed a hard hand what is it going to take !!?? ?? god almigthy pls help my nation and country man grow some balls .........
Written by: walnut, 26 Oct 2011 11:32 AM
From: Bouvet Island, Cayuga lakeside
Could the entire entity be rotten to the core?
A criminal's criminal son is allowed back into the military to once again revert to the criminal and his brother in law is a criminal.
Can a honest and moral person, when tempted by the corruption and greed which is so prevalent, stay virtuous?
The government is rotten, the military rotten, the police rotten and the average citizen gets screwed upside and down.
Written by: mariposa, 26 Oct 2011 11:43 AM
From: United States
Why couldn't it be the General who purchased an apartment AND a penthouse in my building??
Drat.

Written by: BernardJeanPierre, 26 Oct 2011 3:40 PM
From: United States
Now THIS is unbelievable. Here at Hartsfield International Airport (Atlanta) you can't even work IN or AROUND the Airport unless you have 10 years of clean history. (Its a Law here - 10 years of history to even be considered). And yet this guy, who had ALREADY been involved in drug trafficking is allowed to come BACK into the MILITARY!?!?! And its not like he was just allowed back in to shine boots, no, he is a Lieutenant!! Seriously?? Are there not ANY rules or requirements for people in the military anymore?? What in the world is going on?!? And then if that is not the worst part it would appear that his Wife AND Brother-In Law are ALSO involved. I just don't get how people don't see how corruption is destroying the Country they claim to love so much. Corruption has to be checked on a personal level first. Paying a few pesos to avoid a multa, will only further encourage that person to invest himself into more and larger forms of corruption as they move up the ladder.
Written by: RoyStone, 27 Oct 2011 3:50 PM
From: Australia
Failed military - failed state.
Written by: penny, 30 Oct 2011 2:55 AM
From: Azerbaijan
Read Mike Ruppert.How many insiders know who the main drug dealers are.DR is just the same as other countries except you attract the dregs who pretend they are not.Gee rather minor those dollar figures.
Post Your Comment | Not a member? Create your account | Lost your password?
Write your opinion here. Please keep your comment relevant to this article. Please note that any comments which contain offensive language or discriminatory expressions may be edited/removed.
You must log in to post a comment:
Username Password