Quitto: Colombian nationals make up the six men detained as suspects in the murder of an anti-corruption candidate for president of Ecuador, according to a police report released on Thursday. The murder shocked a country already reeling from a spike in drug-related violence.
According to the report, which The Associated Press reviewed, the six men were found hiding in a home in Quito, the capital of Ecuador. The report said that in addition to a car and a motorcycle, officers also seized four shotguns, a 5.56 mm rifle, ammunition and three grenades.
Less than two weeks before a special presidential election, Fernando Villavicencio, 59, was shot and killed in Quito on Wednesday. He was known for speaking out against drug cartels. Although he wasn't a front-runner, his passing highlighted the challenge that Ecuador's next president will face and added to the sense of crisis surrounding organised crime, which has already claimed thousands of lives.
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The arrest of some foreigners in the case had already been confirmed by Juan Zapata, Ecuador's interior minister, though he did not specify their nationalities.
According to Zapata, the murder was a "political crime of a terrorist nature" meant to sabotage the presidential election on August 20.
The Colombians may or may not be alleged members of a criminal organisation, according to the police report. Although he didn't provide any additional information, Zapata claimed that those detained had ties to organised crime.
Villavicencio claimed to have received threats from members of the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico, one of numerous international organised crime organisations that now operate in Ecuador. He claimed that such groups were threatened by his campaign.
The murder of Haitian President Jovenel Mose in 2021, who was shot twelve times at his home, comes to mind when Colombian nationals are mentioned. The case has resulted in the arrest of 18 former Colombian soldiers.
Villavicencio appeared to be leaving the Quito rally in a video that was shared on social media, surrounded by security. The video then showed the candidate entering a white pickup truck as gunshots, screams, and commotion could be heard nearby. Patricio Zuquilanda, Villavicencio's campaign manager, confirmed the sequence of events to the AP.
Before the shooting, the candidate reported receiving at least three death threats to the police, which led to one detention, according to the adviser. Zuquilanda declared, "The Ecuadorian people are weeping, and Ecuador is mortally wounded." No member of society can die as a result of politics.
At a press conference, former vice president and presidential candidate Otto Sonnenholzner lamented the tragedy, saying, "We are dying, drowning in a sea of tears, and we do not deserve to live like this."
According to President Guillermo Lasso, the assassins threw a grenade into the street to cover their escape, but it did not go off. The grenade was later destroyed by police using a controlled explosion.
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The attorney general's office reported that a suspect passed away while in custody from injuries sustained during a firefight. Six people had been detained, according to reports from the authorities on Wednesday, but no further information was provided until Thursday.
Lasso insisted on holding the election that was scheduled for August 20 and suggested that the murder might have been related to organised crime. He proclaimed a state of emergency that involves sending more military personnel across the nation, along with three days of national mourning.
"Despite the passing of a fighter and democrat, the elections are not postponed. Instead, they must be held, and democracy must be strengthened, according to Lasso, who made the statement on Thursday.
Villavicencio pledged to a cheering crowd during his last speech before being assassinated that he would fight corruption and put more criminals behind bars. As one of eight candidates for president, Villavicencio represented the Build Ecuador Movement.
Ecuadorians have experienced violence that hasn't been seen in years as drug traffickers have started using the nation's coastal ports. As rival gangs fight for power and recruit kids, gunfire can be heard in many major cities.
The port city of Manta's mayor was recently shot and killed. In an effort to stop the violence, Lasso issued a state of emergency on July 26 that included two provinces and the nation's prison system.
People in Guayaquil, a port city south of Quito that has been at the centre of gang violence, who were waiting for buses, expressed shock over Villavicencio's death. Leidy Aguirre, a 28-year-old chemist, said, "It shows that the violence in the country is increasing." "This proves that not even politicians are safe, despite the claim that they enjoy greater security than citizens." Away from the violence, people carried on with their daily lives by participating in outdoor exercise classes and going for walks. Marjorie Lino, a 38-year-old housewife, bemoaned the peril as she and a friend strolled along the main street that connects to one of the most violent neighbourhoods in the nation.
Our husbands warn us as wives not to venture outside, but she continued, "When one is going to die, one dies even at one's door of one's house." None of the presidential hopefuls, in her opinion, will be able to put an end to the violence.
Villavicencio was one of the nation's most outspoken opponents of corruption, particularly during President Rafael Correa's administration from 2007 to 2017. Before entering politics as a campaigner against corruption, he was an independent journalist who looked into corruption in previous administrations.
Villavicencio brought numerous legal complaints against high-ranking Correa administration officials, including the former president himself. After being found guilty of defamation for his criticism of Correa and given an 18-month prison sentence, he fled to indigenous territory in Ecuador and later sought asylum in the neighbouring country of Peru.
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Lasso, a conservative former banker who ran for office in 2021 on a pro-business platform, had conflict with the National Assembly majority coalition from the beginning.
As a precaution against being impeached over claims that he failed to act to terminate a problematic contract between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company, Lasso dissolved the National Assembly by decree in May. This action was taken to avoid being subject to those accusations.