QUITO, June 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ecuador’s president announced that the country’s most-wanted fugitive, Los Choneros gang leader “Fito,” had been re-captured over a year after he escaped from prison, triggering a wave of violence.
“We have done our part to proceed with Fito’s extradition to the United States, we are awaiting their response,” Daniel Noboa wrote on X.
Jose Adolfo Macias Villamar, known as Fito, escaped custody in Ecuador in early 2024 and American prosecutors charged him, in absentia, with seven counts of cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms-related crimes, including weapons smuggling.
At the time of his escape, Macias Villamar was also considered a suspect in ordering the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, who was shot in Quito in August 2023.
Macias Villamar’s January 2024 escape resulted in a surge of gang-related violence in Ecuador that lasted days and left about 20 people dead.
Noboa declared a state of emergency in nearly a third of its provinces to quell the violence, but the drug lord was at large until Wednesday’s announcement.
The months-long manhunt ended Wednesday with the president stating that Fito was in the custody of special military forces fighting narcotics trafficking.
Macias Villamar is the leader of Los Choneros, the leading criminal gang in a country plagued by organized crime.
US prosecutors claim his gang worked with Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel to control key drug trafficking routes between South America and the United States.
Ecuador’s government had offered a $1 million reward for information leading to his capture.
If convicted, Fito faces life in prison. — NNN-AGENCIES
