GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador: Authorities in Ecuador scrambled to quell a prison revolt on Wednesday in the port city of Guayaquil, occurring at the same facility where notorious gang leader Adolfo “Fito” Macias escaped in January.
The uprising, described as an “internal revolt” by the SNAI prisons service, was initiated by a group of inmates. While authorities managed to regain control of over 80 percent of the jail, gunshots were heard emanating from the prison complex.
The prison, situated within a vast penitentiary complex in southwestern Guayaquil, witnessed the escape of Macias on January 7. Macias, a feared narco-gang boss serving a 34-year sentence for organized crime, drug trafficking, and murder since 2011, remains at large. His escape triggered a series of mutinies in Ecuadorian prisons and escalated gang violence in the streets.
In response to the unrest, President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency and announced a “war” against gangs, deploying over 20,000 troops to restore order. Ecuador, once regarded as a peaceful enclave in Latin America, has grappled with escalating crises fueled by the infiltration of transnational cartels utilizing its ports for drug trafficking operations destined for the United States and Europe.
