Ecuador Declares State of Emergency Following Prison Escape of Narco Boss
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The notorious leader of one of South America’s infamous drug trafficking groups the Cartel, has escaped from a prison in Ecuador.
The Ecuadorian Prosecutor’s Office announced on the 8th (local time) through official press releases and social media that “an ex officio investigation has been initiated on the suspicion of escape from prison by the crime boss of Los Choneros, also known as Pito.”
The police held a separate press conference and reported, “An investigation is underway as the whereabouts of one inmate from the Litoral Prison is unconfirmed.”
The person in question is ‘Adolfo Macias,’ the leader of ‘Los Choneros,’ who is pointed out as the mastermind behind various serious crimes that have surged in Ecuador. He has been serving a 34-year prison sentence for crimes such as murder and drug trafficking since 2011.
Macias was reported several times through local media to be living a free life like an emperor while incarcerated.
He also filmed and distributed a video of a ‘peace agreement between Ecuadorian gangs’ in the form of a press conference using police officers as henchmen, and even appeared in a music video glorifying himself and gang activities.
This music video captured Macias leisurely reading a book in casual clothes inside the prison.
He is also suspected of ordering the assassination of Fernando Villavicencio, who was one of the leading candidates in last year’s presidential election.
This escape incident occurred just a few days after President Daniel Noboa announced a plan to disperse prisoners by establishing two large prisons on the 4th.
Moreover, the Ecuadorian Correctional Authority (SNAI) confirmed that simultaneous riots occurred in prisons in five places nationwide on this day. In some prisons, it was revealed that prisoners held prison officers as hostages.
Meanwhile, Ecuadorian authorities are pursuing Macias with over 3,000 military and police personnel.
By. Sung Kyu Choi
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