the prosecutor who was investigating the hostage-taking on a TV set was shot dead, two men arrested

César Suarez was responsible for investigating a hostage taking that occurred on the set of a television channel.

The horror continues in Ecuador. The prosecutor in charge of the investigation into the burst of armed men live on the set of an Ecuadorian public television channel on January 9 was killed in his car on Wednesday January 17. Two men suspected of being involved in the assassination of the prosecutor were arrested on Thursday, Ecuadorian police subsequently announced, while the country is still under a state of emergency, in “war” against drug trafficking gangs.

According to the prosecution, the prosecutor murdered in Guayaquil, the economic capital of the country, was responsible for determining which gang had carried out this assault. Several bullet holes passed through the driver’s side window, which was apparently armored, according to photos obtained by AFP. “In response to the murder of our colleague César Suarez (…) I will be categorical: organized crime groups, criminals and terrorists will not stop our commitment to Ecuadorian society”said Attorney General Diana Salazar, in a video posted on X.

At least 19 deaths since the beginning of January

The very spectacular images of the live eruption of heavily armed, hooded men, pinning journalists and employees of the TC channel in Guayaquil to the ground under threat have gone around the world. Amid the gunfire, the broadcast of these surreal images continued live for several minutes, despite the lights going out on the set. The rapid intervention of the police made it possible to put an end to the hostage-taking without causing any casualties. Thirteen attackers were arrested.

This assault on a television set constituted a climax in the chain of violence triggered by the escape, a few days earlier, of the feared leader of the Choneros gang, Adolfo Macias, alias “Fito”. Several mutinies and hostage-taking of guards have affected prisons. In the streets of Guayaquil and the capital Quito, gangs have spread terror with explosions or shots aimed at the police. To restore order, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa decreed the country “in war” against gangs and sent more than 20,000 soldiers to the field. Violence in the country has left at least 19 dead.