Hitman shot and killed an Ecuadorian Air Force colonel on Friday, transforming the once-care South American country into one of the most violent countries in a city that was heavily hit by drug crimes. .
Police said Colonel Porfirio Cedenho, who led the Air Force Special Operations Force, was a passenger in the van that took him to a military ceremony.
Police officer Santiago Taston said more than 20 shots were fired and the driver hit his leg in an attack in Guayaquil city.
Cedenho was traveling from Guayaquil to Manta city about three hours away. Both cities are caught up in a fight between rival drug gangs that saw the murder rate in Ecuador.
The van stopped in the middle of the road with broken windows and was covered in a bullet hole, AFP observed.
Enrique Ortiz/AFP via Getty Images
Police recovered more than 20 bullet casings at the scene. Investigators believe the gunman was also traveling by car.
In a social media message, former President Rafael Correa paid tribute to “dear friend” Cedenho, who served as a member of his security team.
Ecuador is home to an estimated 20 criminal gangs employed by human trafficking, inducing fear in 18 million countries between Peru and Colombia, the world’s largest cocaine producers. .
Last month, the military was a Leader of Ecuador’s biggest crime syndicateLos Lobos was arrested at his home in Portoviejo, a coastal city. Last year, the US declared Los Robos To become Ecuador’s biggest drug lord, the surge in drug operations has led to its most violent country in just a few years, from one of the most stable countries in South America to the most violent.
In recent years, South American nations have fallen into violence due to the rapid spread of transnational cartels using ports to ship drugs to the US and Europe.
In 2023, the country registered a record of 47 murders per 100,000 residents.
In January 2024, President Daniel Novore declared The state of “internal armed conflict” It was caused by the escape of a powerful crime boss after a brutal wave of violence.
The movement came later The gunman attacked and fired TV studios and bandits threatened the random executions of civilians and security forces. Prosecutors investigating the attack came later I was shot.
