José Adolfo Macías Villamar, better known as “Fito”, escaped from La Roca high-security prison in the country’s second largest city, Guayaquil. The port city has been hit hard by drug-related violence. “Fito” is believed to control all crime in Ecuador and is referred to as “the country’s most dangerous”. The fugitive leads the country’s most powerful criminal gang and drug cartel, Los Choneros. Adolfo Macías assumed leadership of the drug cartel in 2020 after the murder of his predecessor Jorge Luis Zambrano. The 44-year-old has been imprisoned since 2011 and will serve a 34-year sentence. Armed forces are transporting Adolfo Macías, leader of the notorious Los Choneros drug cartel. Photo: Joint Command of the Armed Force / Reuters State of emergency The incident has brought with it a wave of crime, including in the country’s many prisons, where criminal gangs have great power and the police are under enormous pressure. President Daniel Noboa on Monday introduced a state of emergency for 60 days and a national curfew at night. A video circulating on social media shows an abducted police officer being forced to read out a message to the relatively new president. – You declared war, then it’s war you get. You declared a state of emergency. We declare police, civilians and soldiers as spoils of war. CONFLICT-FILLED: Armed soldiers patrol Quito’s streets after a day characterized by chaos and violence. Photo: Reuters The gangs have taken control of prisons and both captured and killed police in several places in the country. Two police officers are among at least ten killed in the last 24 hours, the police in the country say. Several people have also been abducted. Not the first time It is not the first time Adolfo Macías is on the run. Back in 2013, he managed to escape the high prison walls along with 17 other inmates from La Roca prison. At the time, he was on the run for several months before the fugitives were caught in May of the same year. Aerial photos show that inmates in the prison in Guayaquil have written “Fito” on the ground the day after he escaped. Photo: Enrique Ortiz / AFP Massive escalation Only four years ago, Ecuador was considered one of Latin America’s most peaceful countries. A lot has happened since then. It is especially drug-related crime that has skyrocketed in recent years. This was due to the country’s geographical location between the neighboring countries of Peru and Colombia, the world’s largest cocaine producers. Ecuador has thus become a battleground for various drug cartels fighting for control over the smuggling routes. Ships with bananas are used to smuggle cocaine to, for example, Europe. At least two of the large seizures in Norway last year came from Guayaquil in Ecuador. Thousands of people are killed every year as a result of gang violence. This applies both to random victims, but also to judges and politicians who are hit by targeted attacks. Last year, over 7,500 people were killed, according to police records. Among them was presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio who was shot during an election rally in the capital Quito. The incident happened just hours after he had come down hard on Ecuador’s powerful drug cartels. Adolfo Macías has been linked to the murder on several occasions because he has previously threatened to kill the presidential candidate. A manhunt is now underway to find the powerful gang leader, writes The Guardian. Storming of TV studio On Tuesday evening, heavily armed and masked persons broke into the channel TC Television during a live broadcast. It was all broadcast live before the channel went off the air. TC Television is one of the largest media houses in Ecuador. The incident took place in the country’s largest city, Guayaquil. The storming of the TV studio comes the day after President Noboa declared a state of emergency in the country, including a national curfew at night. 13 people have been arrested after the incident and charged with terrorism, according to the police. – This is an act that should be considered terrorism, said police chief César Zapata to the TV channel Teleamazonas. See video of the storming here: Organized crime – The prisoners rule the prisons, says Eduardo Gamarra to CBS News. The professor of international relations at Florida International University explains that the gangs essentially control the country’s prisons. – Gang members are imprisoned and as a result these prisons have become fertile ground for organized crime, says the professor. The country’s previous governments have been unable to deal with the violence. In the election campaign, the country’s new president promised tough measures, but that seems to have caused the gangs to react with even more violence. Police in Guayaquil are on their way to the TV studio that was stormed by masked men on Tuesday. Photo: AFP The professor believes the violence comes as a result of confrontation between the state, which is trying to reorganize and regain power – and the response from the enormous organized crime the country is exposed to. – The situation in Ecuador is a direct result of the recently inaugurated government, led by the young president Daniel Noboa, trying to assert its power over enormously powerful transnational organized criminal networks, he states. Taking action Now President Daniel Noboa has declared an internal armed conflict. – I have ordered the armed forces to carry out military operations to neutralize these groups, writes Noboa in social media and refers to violent gang members. President Daniel Noboa speaks during a ceremony in the capital Quito in northern Ecuador. Photo: AFP In November, the newly elected president promised to tame the ever-growing wave of drug-related violence in Ecuador’s streets and prisons. The right-wing president has previously stated that the fight against gang crime is one of his most important tasks. In a video on Instagram, Naboa said on Monday that the country will not allow itself to be threatened or negotiate with what he refers to as “narco-terrorists”. Great concern Several countries are now expressing great concern about the violence in the country. In this country, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has updated its travel information and is asking travelers to exercise extra caution in areas where criminal groups operate. – Tourists are encouraged to take the necessary precautions and exercise extra caution. Follow the media and listen to advice from local authorities, writes UD on its website. China has temporarily closed its embassy in Quito and the US is also very concerned about the situation. Brian Nichols in the US State Department writes on X/Twitter that the US is “very concerned about today’s violence and kidnappings”. The police are patrolling the capital Quito’s historic center after the violent incidents in the country. Photo: Karen Toro / Reuters Furthermore, US officials are said to maintain close contact with the Ecuadorian president’s team. Neighboring Peru is now deploying police forces and declaring a state of emergency in the northern border areas. Never before has so much cocaine been found in Norway – much of it well hidden in banana boxes. The drug lords are gaining more and more power in Europe and South America, and have now begun to attack completely innocent people. Do we have anything to fear here at home?
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Notorious drug lord on the run – again – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
