Ecuador's Fugitive Gang Leader Captured After Months-Long Manhunt

© AP Photo / Martin MejiaA photo of slain presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio hangs at the cemetery where police officers stand guard in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023.
A photo of slain presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio hangs at the cemetery where police officers stand guard in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023.  - Sputnik Africa, 1920, 22.04.2024
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Fabricio Colon Pico, the fugitive leader of Ecuador's second-largest criminal gang, Los Lobos, was recaptured on Monday, wrapping up a months-long manhunt, the public prosecutor's office said.
Colon Pico escaped the Riobamba prison on January 8 as a wave of prison riots rocked the South American nation, leading President Daniel Noboa to declare a state of emergency. Jose Adolfo Macias Villamar, the leader of Ecuador's largest gang, Los Choneros, was also found missing from his cell.

"This morning, the Ecuadorian public prosecutor's office and police recaptured Fabricio Colon P., one of the country's most wanted criminals who escaped from the prison in Riobamba in January," the authority said on social media.

Pico was rearrested during a raid in the town of Puerto Quito, in the northern province of Pichincha. Police also found two other fugitive prisoners and weapons in the searched property.
Ecuador has been plagued by drug gang-related violence since 2020, including the August 2023 assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio and an armed attack on a TV channel in January.
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