The Witch House

Special Agent Dibble shows some of the evidence of witchcraft found in the house.
One of the lists of names

#1. The ox tongue in its nest of rotten eggs and corn.

#2. Some of the occult books left behind by the Brazilian witch.

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Ox tongues, eggs, corn dough and lists of names figured in the bizarre rituals practiced by Noriega in the "witch house" discovered at Fort Amador. There, with his Brazilian witch and numerous occult books, Noriega made offerings to "benign" and "malevolent" cults, according to U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division Special Agent, James Dibble.

In a room devoted to evil magic or witchcraft was a ball of corn dough containing Panama President Guillermo Endara's crumpled photo. Some unidentified red slime contained La Prensa director Roberto Eisenmann's photo. A putrid ox tongue, covered with rotten eggs and corn had been folded over and sealed with nails. Dibble opened it to find a piece of paper but writing on it was illegible. The names, said Dibble, were of people Noriega was trying to "neutralize" through magic.

The Witch House was occupied by a Brazilian sorceress whose photograph hung on the walls. American investigators believe that many of Noriega's decisions and sometimes unpredictable actions were prompted by the advice of his witch. She apparently had a talent for Candomble, a Brazilian version of the Latin American religion known as Santeria. These ancient religions are a blend of African tribal beliefs and Roman Catholicism and incorporate some of the elements of voodoo. A special upstairs room of the house was dedicated to Candomble rituals.

When U.S. troops raided Noriega's Witch House, which is at Amador, a stone's throw from an American Army officers club, the sorceress had fled just a few minutes beforehand, even leaving a lighted cigarette in an ashtray. Despite an intensive search, she was not found.

The Enemy Within: Casting Out Panama’s Demon
Copyright © 1990 Focus Publications, (Int.), S.A.