The Panamanian Celestino ‘Pelenchín’ Caballero, former world boxing champion, was suspended from the position he held in the World Boxing Association (WBA), announced the entity, after being arrested today in his country with 10 kilograms of drugs in his car according to reported the Public Ministry.
The AMB said in a statement that Caballero’s “temporary suspension” from his position as deputy director of the Comprehensive Development and Security Committee will be “at least until the investigations of the Panama prosecutor’s office are completed, for alleged possession of drugs by the former world champion.” .
“We deeply regret the situation in ‘Pelenchín’ we hope it is a misunderstanding and that he can move forward,” said the boxing organization based in Panama City since 2007.
The president of the WBA, the Venezuelan Gilberto Jesús Mendoza, affirmed that “as an entity that has fought against drugs, we must remove him from his position until the situation is resolved.”
The fighter, who was retired in 2014, “was arrested in a police operation in the Corredor Norte,” one of the main express routes to and from the Panamanian capital, the director of the National Police, Commissioner Omar Pinzón, told reporters today. .
Police officers found 5 kilograms of drugs hidden in a toolbox in the trunk of the vehicle and another 5 kilograms inside a plastic bag, the Public Ministry said in a statement.
Caballero was made available to the First Superior Prosecutor’s Office Specialized in Drug Crimes and the authorities are conducting laboratory tests to determine if the 10 packages that were seized are cocaine, Pinzón explained.
‘Pelenchín’, who is also a reggae singer, won the WBA and IBF super bantamweight boxing world title in 2006. EFE
Celestino ‘Pelenchín’ Caballero suspended for carrying drugs
