Ecuador politician murder: Prison gangs in terror reign

"Here, we wage for ideology with our lives."

Five years ago, the words Fernando Villavicencio shouted into a microphone astatine a run rally, conscionable moments earlier helium died successful a hail of bullets, could person been dismissed arsenic an exaggeration, a rhetorical flourish.

But connected Wednesday, they proved each excessively prophetic. Villavicencio, a campaigner successful the upcoming statesmanlike election, was gunned down arsenic helium near the rally successful the capital, Quito.

His assassination is not an isolated incident.

A politician changeable arsenic helium was inspecting nationalist works, bodies strung from bridges, pack leaders publishing videos successful which they endanger to termination politicians unless they bash their bidding - a seemingly endless litany of unit has dominated the headlines successful this state antecedently known for its safety.

By 2022, Ecuador's homicide complaint had much than quadrupled and Ecuadoreans' cognition of information had plummeted, on with their assurance successful constabulary to support them secure.

It is harmless to presume that, were a canvass to beryllium conducted now, the percent of those who consciousness harmless would beryllium adjacent lower.

How did Ecuador, a state which until truthful precocious was considered a harmless oasis for tourists and locals alike, go a federation wherever democratically elected politicians are gunned down?

The reply is gangs - and geography.

Ecuador is sandwiched betwixt Colombia and Peru, the 2 largest producers of cocaine successful the world.

Colombia and Peru, wherever the coca leafage - the earthy worldly utilized to marque cocaine - is grown, are astatine the centre of this amerciable commercialized spanning ample parts of the globe.

And portion accumulation is up, truthful are the seizures of the cause made by constabulary worldwide.

Colombia, successful particular, has spent decades trying to stem the travel of cocaine and its constabulary person received grooming and enactment from the US.

But conscionable arsenic constabulary forces person pooled resources successful bid to disrupt the travel of cocaine, the gangs doing the trafficking person besides go much international.

Following the demobilisation of Colombia's Farc rebel radical - erstwhile a large subordinate successful the cocaine commercialized - caller players person emerged which person forged alliances acold beyond Colombia's borders.

Mexican cause cartels and transgression groups from the Balkans person gained a foothold successful South America.

These groups were keen to research caller ways to transport the cocaine produced successful Colombia to its buyers successful Europe and the United States.

As formerly lawless areas successful Colombia came nether power of the authorities forces pursuing the bid woody signed betwixt the Colombian authorities and the Farc rebels successful 2016, the request for caller routes became much pressing.

These transnational transgression groups progressively eyed Ecuador arsenic an charismatic transit state for their cause shipments.

Its porous borderline with Colombia, its bully infrastructure and its ample ports connected the Pacific seashore made Ecuador geographically convenient for these gangs.

Ecuador's information forces besides had small acquisition of dealing with almighty cartels, meaning they were not prepared for the influx of heavy equipped criminals.

It did not instrumentality agelong for transnational transgression syndicates to infiltrate section gangs, which up until past had dedicated themselves to lesser crimes specified arsenic extortion.

Many of these caller alliances were forged wrong Ecuador's jails and it was down bars that the surge of unit and brutality which has since dispersed to Ecuador's cities archetypal erupted.

Gangs with ties to rival cartels successful Mexico confronted each different successful jails, mutilating each different with home-made weapons and displaying the decapitated heads of their enemies.

Hundreds of inmates person been killed successful deadly fights successful Ecuador's overcrowded prisons implicit the past years. Efforts to quell the unit by transferring prisoners to antithetic jails look simply to person dispersed the occupation nationwide.

And portion galore of the leaders of the gangs which person emerged successful Ecuador are down bars, the unit they person unleashed has not been confined to the prisons.

Through mobile phones smuggled into the jails, they tally their transgression enterprises connected the extracurricular and bid the killings of those perceived arsenic lasting successful their way.

Fernando Villavicencio had been threatened the week earlier helium died by members of Los Choneros, a pack named aft the metropolis of Chone, successful occidental Ecuador.

Los Choneros has ties to the Sinaloa cartel, whose erstwhile leader, Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán is successful jailhouse successful the US.

Buoyed by the wealth channelled to them from their caller allies overseas and their firepower boosted by high-powered weapons smuggled successful from the US via Mexico, these gangs person go a formidable enemy.

Few are consenting to face them. Fernando Villavicencio was 1 of them.

Even aft having been warned by Los Choneros not to defy the pack oregon adjacent notation its name, Villavicencio remained existent to his run slogan: "It's clip for the brave".

"They [the gangs] said they would interruption me, but I don't fearfulness them," helium said successful a video uploaded to the net soon aft helium was threatened.

Villavicencio was fixed constabulary protection, but helium continued to campaign. Just moments earlier his death, helium was shaking the hands of voters.

Shortly aft his brutal killing, a video appeared showing masked men admitting carrying retired his assassination and threatening different statesmanlike candidate.

Chillingly, the masked men accidental they beryllium not to Los Choneros, but to a pack calling itself Los Lobos (The Wolves), which has links to different almighty Mexican transgression organisation, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

While constabulary person not yet said who they deliberation is down Fernando Villavicencio's assassination, the information that a statesmanlike campaigner could beryllium killed portion nether constabulary extortion astatine a nationalist lawsuit successful the superior volition permission Ecuadoreans who bash not bask specified levels of extortion fearing for their safety.