136 prison guards and administrative staff taken hostage during a prison riot in Ecuador were released Saturday night.
The crisis was triggered by the escape from Guayaquil prison of one of the most powerful drug gang bosses, Jose Adolfo Macias, known by the alias “Fito” and head of the country’s main “Los Choneros” group.
Police report at least 19 people were killed in violence over the past week, including civilians, prison guards and police officers.
Hundreds of military and police officers have been deployed to search for Fito since Monday, and Noboa announced a 60-day state of emergency in the country and an overnight curfew.
President Daniel Noboa launched a military crackdown on criminal gangs earlier this week, sparking a deadly confrontation with drug gangs in the South American country that left 180 prison guards and civil servants held hostage by rioting inmates.
Security protocols and the joint work of the police and the national army enabled the release of all the hostages who were being held in various prisons across the country, the SNAI prison authorities said in a statement on X.
Ecuador’s murder rate has quadrupled between 2018 and 2022 as criminal gangs have gained a foothold in the country and drug traffickers use prisons as criminal offices.
Last year was the worst, with 7,800 murders and a record 220 tonnes of drugs seized.
