LatinNews Daily - 19 February 2024

Ecuador: On 7 February the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (Ofac) imposed sanctions on the Ecuadorean criminal gang, Los Choneros, and its leader, José Adolfo Macías Villamar (also known as ‘Fito’). In a press release, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson stated that “drug trafficking gangs such as Los Choneros, many with ties to powerful drug cartels in Mexico, threaten the lives and livelihoods of communities in Ecuador and throughout the region. We stand in support of Ecuador in its fight to combat drug trafficking, curb the proliferation of prison gangs and prison violence, and take back its streets.” Ecuador is experiencing unprecedented levels of violence; President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency on 9 January 2024 in response to Macías’ escape from prison on 7 January. The subsequent riots in prisons, which saw prison staff taken hostage, an armed attack during a live television broadcast, and the assassination of the prosecutor investigating the television attack, led Noboa to declare an ‘internal armed conflict’ against the gangs. The implications of Ofac’s actions are that any property or interests related to Los Choneros or Macías in the US “are blocked and must be reported to Ofac”, according to the Treasury’s statement. The sanctions come as part of wider US support to Ecuador, including law enforcement and defence support for Ecuadorean forces, as well as Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) funding for the construction of the Ecuadorean Coast Guard Academy, which was announced by INL Assistant Secretary Todd Robinson on his visit to Ecuador from 7-9 February.

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