Once peaceful Ecuador is currently suffering from a wave of violence. The government mainly does drug dealers and that “organized crime” responsible for the fragile situation.
After the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in Ecuador, the influential gang leader José Adolfo Macías alias “Fito” been transferred to a maximum security prison. Around 4,000 heavily armed members of the army and police took part in the operation in a prison in Guayaquil in the southwest of the country on Saturday.
The gang leader is said to have threatened Villavicencio with death in the past, and Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso is making members of the “organized crime” responsible for the murder of the politician. According to President Lasso became the leader of the criminal gang “Los Choneros” transferred to the maximum security prison La Roca. This has 150 places and is located in the same prison complex in Guayaquil where “Fito” was already incarcerated.
Gang leader jailed in Ecuador since 2011 for organized crime
Images released by Lasso showed a bearded man being led away by security forces. Other images show the man tied up and lying face down on the ground. The gang leader, who has been in prison since 2011, was sentenced to 34 years in prison for organized crime, drug trafficking and murder. According to the authorities controlled “Fito” and his men at least one building of the prison where he was imprisoned.
The promising presidential candidate Villavicencio, who had dedicated himself to the fight against corruption, was shot dead on Wednesday evening after a campaign event on the way to his car. Six Colombians were arrested after the attack. A seventh attacker was shot dead by security forces.
Former journalist and MP Villavicencio reported last week that he had received death threats from “Fito” receive. A “representative” of the drug lord have contacted him and announced him “turn off”if he continues his ties “Los Choneros” should mention. The presidential candidate was under police protection.
“State crime”
Meanwhile, Villavicencio’s widow Verónica Sarauz blamed the state for her husband’s death. It is a “state crime”since he himself “in the custody of the state by the police” found, she told journalists on Saturday. She accused the police of not protecting her husband adequately. She and her three children are “also in danger”.
In addition, Sarauz accused supporters of ex-president Rafael Correa in connection with the assassination of her husband. Correa was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2020 after Villavicencio investigated him for corruption. The day before his murder, Villavicencio had filed a complaint with prosecutors about irregularities in oil contracts negotiated during Correa’s tenure. He estimated the damage to the country at around nine billion dollars (8.2 billion euros).
condemned Pope “unjustified violence”
After Villavicencio’s death, the previous vice-presidential candidate Andrea Gonzáles is to stand in his place in the August 20 election, the centrist Construye party announced on Saturday. González, 36, a longtime Villavicencio ally, was scheduled to take part in a campaign debate in Quito on Sunday. So far, she has primarily campaigned for environmental issues such as protecting the oceans and mangrove forests, as well as fighting against wildlife smuggling and deforestation.
Meanwhile, in a message to Archbishop Alfredo Espinoza of Quito, Pope Francis denounced the violence in Ecuador. He judges “with all power” the “suffering caused by unjustified violence”Pope Francis declared on Saturday.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
