FBI helps with investigation
Six Colombians arrested after murder in Ecuador
8/11/2023 8:16 am
Less than 48 hours after the assassination of presidential candidate Villavicencio in Ecuador, the authorities arrested six suspects, all of whom are said to be Colombians and criminals. The investigation will show that. The FBI will also help.
According to the government, the alleged perpetrators of the assassination attempt on presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in Ecuador are foreigners. Interior Minister Juan Zapata said the six arrested were involved in organized crime.
Pistols, grenades, a rifle and a submachine gun were seized. Zapata spoke of a “political crime with terrorist traits” and an “attempt to sabotage the upcoming elections”. According to the police, the suspects come from neighboring Colombia. The perpetrators shot opposition candidate Villavicencio on Wednesday after an election campaign event in the capital Quito. At least nine people were injured. A suspect died after an exchange of gunfire with security forces.
A state of emergency has been declared in Ecuador for three months after the deadly assassination attempt on the promising presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. President Guillermo Lasso also asked the FBI for help with the investigation on Thursday and ordered a three-day national mourning. The presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for August 20 should nevertheless take place as planned. The European Union and the UN condemned the assassination attempt.
Lasso told the online service X, formerly known as Twitter, that he had “requested the FBI’s assistance in the investigation into the murder.” The US federal police “accepted our request and a delegation will arrive in the country in the next few hours,” he added.
Villavicencio fought corruption
“This is a political crime of a terrorist nature and we have no doubt that this murder is an attempt to sabotage the electoral process,” Lasso said. Armed forces have been mobilized throughout the country to ensure the security of citizens, peace and free and democratic elections. The journalist and former MP Villavicencio, who specializes in corruption, was shot dead on Wednesday evening after an election campaign on his way to his car in the Ecuadorian capital Quito.
The European Union condemned the murder as a “heinous crime” and pledged its support for Ecuador to organize peaceful and democratic elections. In order to guarantee this, strict protective measures would have to apply to all candidates, explained EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. According to him, EU election experts are currently in the South American country.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the attack a “serious threat to democracy”. The UN human rights commissioner Volker Türk emphasized “the challenges for the country and its people in view of the violence”.
The centrist Villavicencio was one of the most promising of eight candidates for the early presidential elections at the end of August. In the latest polls by the Cedatos Institute, he was in second place with around 13 percent behind lawyer Luisa González, who is close to former President Rafael Correa.
The 59-year-old had been involved in an investigation into uncovering a vast corruption network involving former left-wing President Rafael Correa. Correa, who ruled the country between 2007 and 2017, was taken to court as a result of the investigation. The ex-president fled to Belgium and was sentenced to eight years in prison in absentia.
Homicide rate hits all-time high
Villavicencio worked first as a waiter and then as an investigative journalist. After being convicted of insulting then-President Correa, he fled to the Amazon jungle for a while to avoid prison. After his return to Ecuador he sat as a member of parliament. There he chaired the oversight commission that called for President Lasso’s impeachment earlier this year over an alleged corruption case.
In the week before his death, Villavicencio had repeatedly complained about threats from the leader of the criminal gang “Los Choneros” against him and his campaign team, so he was under police protection. The gang is connected to organized drug trafficking.
Early presidential and parliamentary elections will be held in Ecuador on August 20th. These became necessary after Lasso dissolved the National Assembly in the midst of impeachment proceedings for alleged embezzlement. The once peaceful country is also suffering from a wave of violence. The homicide rate of 25 homicides per 100,000 people last year was the highest in the country’s history. The government blames drug dealers in particular.