They say no one dies before their time… but in Nayib Bukele’s El Salvador, some deaths seem so timely that they challenge the saying, making it seem like fate can be twisted, and endings rushed.

On September 9, three key figures closely tied to murky actions within Bukele’s government were aboard a helicopter that crashed in Pasaquina, La Unión, killing them and six others. The helicopter had just received Manuel Coto Barrientos, the former general manager of the Santa Victoria Savings and Credit Cooperative (COSAVI), who was implicated in the embezzlement of up to $35 million. Coto had been handed over by Honduran authorities after being captured while attempting to cross into Nicaragua following an Interpol red alert. 

The other two “timely” deaths for Bukele’s administration were that of Civil National Police Director Mauricio Arriaza Chicas and Deputy Director of Police Intelligence, Douglas Omar García Funes.

The financier who knew too much

Manuel Alberto Coto Barrientos, the former president of COSAVI, was a financial wizard—so much so that he managed to make $35 million vanish from the institution’s accounts. COSAVI has been under investigation since May for defrauding the public economy.

Although his international arrest warrant was officially issued due to the alleged fraud, it’s clear that this financial “genius” knew too much about the shady dealings of legislators and mayors within the Nuevas Ideas party—Bukele’s political vehicle for securing the presidency.

In a country like El Salvador, currently run by a family and a few unscrupulous cronies, having too much information can be dangerous. And when scandals break, the danger becomes even greater.

A police chief with a dark history

Mauricio Arriaza Chicas, the director of the Civil National Police, was for years the face of Bukele’s repression. He was legally backed by the state of emergency, which justified the atrocities committed against civilians—whether or not they were involved in criminal activities.

Arriaza Chicas was one of the main targets of accusations from farmers and impoverished citizens whose innocence couldn’t be proven due to a corrupt judicial and police system. Among other accusations, he was implicated in the murder of a female police officer and faced a long list of human rights violations, according to international organizations.

With his death, President Bukele can now breathe easier, free to scapegoat the deceased police chief as the sole, or at least the main, culprit behind indiscriminate arrests, police corruption, torture, and the violation of detainees’ rights—whether or not they were guilty of any crime.

A double-dealing officer

Although Douglas Omar García Funes, the deputy director of Police Intelligence, was placed in his position by Bukele, he had been under DEA surveillance since the administration of Elías Antonio Saca González (2004-2009) for suspected involvement in protecting drug cartels. He allegedly achieved this by using corrupt members of the Police Reaction Unit.

In this case, Bukele’s government has rid itself of a potential scapegoat in case international agencies decided to delve deeper into the state’s ties to the drug trade.

President Bukele seems to have had exceptional luck, as in a single incident, three shadows that could have caused future problems—potentially implicating him and much of his inner circle in drug trafficking and other dubious dealings—vanished. A timely accident that clears the way of three embarrassing associates doesn’t happen every day, but Bukele seems to have plenty of good fortune when it comes to maintaining impunity.