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Mics, cameras found in Guatemalan presidential palace

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  • President Alvaro Colom says microphones, cameras found in palace
  • He says "organized crime" may be involved
  • Mexico's anti-trafficking campaign may have pushed criminals to Guatemala, he says
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GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (CNN) -- Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom said Friday that government prosecutors are trying to determine who put microphones and video cameras in the presidential palace.

Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom: "Organized crime" may be behind cameras found in the presidential palace.

Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom: "Organized crime" may be behind cameras found in the presidential palace.

"It's a serious allegation, it has never happened before in Guatemala," he told CNN en Espaņol.

He said he did not know who was responsible for the breach of security, but added, "One of the possibilities is organized crime."

He said "a lot of people" had access to the palace and his office.

Colom noted that Mexican President Felipe Calderon's anti-narcotrafficking efforts may have pressured drug cartels to move their smuggling to other countries, including Guatemala.

Calderon said in June that his campaign against drug traffickers was working. Mexico has seized more cocaine and money from drug cartels than anywhere else in the world and this summer Mexican authorities seized at least 16,000 arms, including more than 1,000 grenades.

Colom said Friday that he has already taken measures to ensure his security and that of his family.

The president said that the discovery of the microphones and cameras explain, to him, some strange experiences he's had recently.

He said he was in his office when the Guatemalan military called him and asked permission to seize a plane suspected of carrying illegal drugs.

Within moments of approving the action, the plane disappeared. He is convinced the call was being monitored.

Colom took office in January and is Guatemala's first leftist president in 53 years.

CNN's Claudia Palacios contributed to this report.

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