Ecuadorian gangs use kidnapped policeman to declare ‘war’ on country
Police officers kidnapped by Ecuadorian gangs have been forced to deliver a statement declaring “war” on the country.
The declaration came after Daniel Noboa, the the country’s president, announced a state of emergency following the prison escape of one of the country’s most powerful drugs bosses on Sunday.
After the escape of Jose Adolfo Macias, known as Fito and the leader of the Choneros gang, the gang – Ecuador biggest – retaliated, taking police officers hostage and setting off explosions in several cities.
Masked gunmen stormed and opened fire in a TV studio during a live broadcast on Tuesday, prompting Mr Noboa to give orders for criminal gangs to be “neutralised” by the military. Several journalists were taken hostage.
Authorities reported multiple explosions and cars being set alight on Tuesday, including in Quito, the capital, and said seven police officers had been kidnapped.
A video circulating on social media showed three of the kidnapped officers sitting on the ground with a gun pointed at them as one was forced to read a statement addressed to Mr Noboa.
“You declared war, you will get war,” the visibly terrified officer read. “You declared a state of emergency. We declare police, civilians and soldiers to be the spoils of war.” The statement said anyone found on the street after 11pm “will be executed”.
There was panic on the streets, with shops and businesses in various cities closing early and residents rushing home as face-to-face classes were suspended nationwide until Friday.
Jaime Vela, the head of Ecuador’s joint command of the armed forces, said the gangs had “committed bloody acts without precedent”. He told media after a security council meeting in Quito, was headed by Mr Noboa, that “despite their brutal wickedness, this attempt will fail”.
Ecuador, long a peaceful haven sandwiched between major cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, has seen violence explode in recent years as rival gangs with links to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control.
At least 10 people have been killed in a series of attacks blamed on gangs, eight in Guayaquil and two “viciously murdered by armed criminals” in nearby Nobol, police said on Tuesday. Three other officers were wounded in Guayaquil.
Mr Noboa, 36, who was elected last year on a pledge to fight drug-related violence, ordered the military operations against gangs he described as “terrorist organisations and belligerent non-state actors”.
Brian Nichols, the top US diplomat for Latin America, said Washington was “extremely concerned” by the violence and kidnappings, pledging to provide assistance and “remain in close contact” with Mr Noboa’s team.
Peru put its border with Ecuador under a state of emergency, while China’s embassy and consulates in Ecuador announced on Wednesday that services to the public were suspended.
“The reopening to the public will be announced in due course,” the embassy said in a statement shared on Chinese social media, with Chile, Colombia and Brazil sending messages of support to Mr Noboa.
A manhunt is under way for Fito, who had been serving a 34-year sentence for organised crime, drug trafficking and murder. The 44-year-old is believed to have escaped just hours before police arrived to conduct an inspection of Guayaquil prison, where he was held.
On Tuesday, officials said another narco boss, Los Lobos gang leader Fabricio Colon Pico, had also escaped since his arrest last Friday for alleged involvement in a plot to assassinate Ecuador’s attorney general.
