• Roberto Samcam, former Nicaraguan military officer, was killed in Costa Rica.
• Samcam was a critic of President Ortega and had lived in exile since 2018.
• He was shot multiple times by an assailant posing as a delivery driver.
• The incident raises alarm over the safety of Nicaraguan dissidents abroad.
• Samcam had been involved in documenting human rights abuses by the Ortega regime.

Roberto Samcam, a former Nicaraguan military officer and vocal critic of President Daniel Ortega, was shot dead on June 19 at his home in Costa Rica, where he had been living in exile since 2018. His assassination occurred around 7:30 AM local time, when an assailant, disguised as a delivery driver, gained access to Samcam's condominium complex and fired at least eight rounds into him before fleeing on a motorcycle, as confirmed by local authorities and Samcam's wife Claudia Vargas Reuters, Le Monde, and Al Jazeera.

Roberto Samcam, 67, had been a significant figure in anti-government protests in Nicaragua that erupted in 2018, triggered by social security reforms but escalating to demands for democratic governance. Following the protests, which were met with a deadly crackdown by Ortega's regime, he fled to Costa Rica Reuters, Le Monde, and Al Jazeera.

Following his exile, Samcam worked with Costa Rica’s Arias Foundation for Peace and Human Progress, serving as a chain-of-command expert for the Court of Conscience, which aimed to document human rights abuses committed by the Nicaraguan government. He was particularly focused on assembling cases that could be addressed by international legal bodies Le Monde and Al Jazeera.

Samcam's assassination underscores the ongoing threats faced by Nicaraguan dissidents, even in exile. Notably, another critic, Joao Maldonado, has survived multiple attempts on his life in Costa Rica, indicating a broader pattern of targeting opposition figures by forces associated with Ortega’s government Reuters, Le Monde, and Al Jazeera.