Daily coverage from across the country, written for the expat community
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A tribunal convicted six defendants in the Decevale case and ordered a $693 million repair payment to Isspol, the police social security institute. The case grew out of alleged irregularities in securities-market operations involving Decevale S.A., Citadel Casa de Valores and Isspol funds.
Ronald Javier Macias Villamar, known as alias Javi and identified as the brother of Los Choneros leader alias Fito, was captured in Colombia. Ecuadorian officials say the operation involved the National Police, Armed Forces, National Intelligence Center and Colombian authorities.
Primicias reports Ecuador recorded 10,562 tuberculosis cases in 2025 and 676 deaths nationwide. The report says prisons accounted for 2,576 cases, highlighting a public-health problem concentrated inside the prison system.
La Hora reports that Ecuador recorded 262 massacre events in 2025 and 94 more in the first quarter of 2026, citing the Observatorio Ecuatoriano de Crimen Organizado.
The Consejo de la Judicatura filed a criminal complaint with the Fiscalía General alleging a network solicited payments from judges and prosecutors to alter disciplinary reports. The institution says: 'No habrá encubrimientos.'
Over 2,000 people detained in 9 days. The penalty for violating curfew is up to 3 years in prison. Here's what every resident needs to know about the enforcement, exceptions, and your rights.
Interior Minister Reimberg told AFP that organized crime groups have launched roughly 600 drone attempts at El Encuentro prison since it opened. The government says it will build as many mega-prisons as needed.
President Noboa declared a 15-day curfew from 11 PM to 5 AM covering Pichincha, Guayas, Manabí, and six other provinces plus four cantons. No salvoconducts. Business groups say the last curfew cost exporters $200 million.
At a high-level meeting in Quito, Ecuador formally asked Paraguay to classify Los Choneros, Los Lobos, Los Tiguerones, Chone Killers, and Latin Kings as terrorist organizations. Paraguay's response was non-conclusive. A Paraguayan presidential visit is scheduled for July, with a follow-up coordination meeting in Asunción on September 2.
After Colombia's President Petro asked Noboa to release former Vice President Jorge Glas during a meeting in the Galápagos, Ecuador's government pushed back hard — rejecting the 'political prisoners' framing and affirming that Glas is detained for corruption, not politics.
Ecuador's Interior Ministry reports a 28% decline in homicides for March 2026, alongside 4,300 arrests and 2,200 warrants executed. The numbers represent real progress, but the baseline is staggering: 2025 saw 9,216 homicides, making Ecuador one of the deadliest countries in Latin America.
Police K-9 units intercepted nearly 22,000 dried shark fins weighing 1,905 kilograms at Guayaquil's Jose Joaquin de Olmedo International Airport on April 2. The shipment -- 75 bundles disguised as fish bladders -- was bound for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is one of Ecuador's largest shark fin seizures in recent years.
