The United States Department of State has offered a reward of up to 5 million dollars for information that leads to the capture of the ringleaders responsible for the murder of the Ecuadorian candidate Fernando Villavicencio and another million dollars for information that allows the identification of the leaders of the criminal group responsible for the murder of the candidate.
The FBI is assisting Quito in the investigation of the assassination, after Ecuadorian authorities detained six Colombians suspected of having carried out the attack on Fernando Villavicencio and who are believed to be part of an organized criminal group. The information, which may be anonymous, must be sent to the email Informa@recompensas131.org or by phone (in Ecuador) to 131.
Villavicencio, a 59-year-old journalist who was very critical of organized crime, had reported days before his death threats from José Adolfo Macías Villamar, alias “Fito”, identified as the leader of Los Choneros, a group with ties to the Mexican drug cartel. Sinaloa.
For now, Washington, which immediately offered help to Quito to investigate what happened, has shown caution and has not attributed responsibility for the assassination to any specific group.
“The United States will continue to support the people of Ecuador and work to bring to justice individuals who seek to undermine democratic processes through violent crime,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
