Drugs cartel kingpin, body double and mystery jailbreak: The narco who plunged Ecuador into national emergency
Adolfo Macías Villamar, known as Fito, escaped from prison on 7 January and plunged the country into chaos, Holly Evans writes
9 hours ago
A drug ganglord who ran Ecuador’s most powerful cartel from behind bars is the man responsible for causing a national crisis, with a state emergency declared across the South American country.
Despite being incarcerated since 2011, the walls around his prison cell failed to prevent Adolfo Macías Villamar from successfully operating the feared Los Choneros gang, which has been linked to drug trafficking and murder.
Yet his escape from prison has caused widespread chaos, with President Daniel Noboa forced to impose a nightly curfew after Ecuadorian gangsters unleashed a wave of deadly violence.
More than 130 prison staff are currently being held hostage by inmates across five jails, while police officers have been killed and bombs have been detonated.
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