Ecuadorian police announced on Thursday that they had discovered three severed heads in the province of Esmeraldas (northwest), located near the border with Colombia and subject to a state of emergency due to a wave of violence linked to the drug traffic.
“
We know that these beheaded people were part of a group of criminals organized from here in Esmeraldas
,” police general Fausto Buenaño told reporters.
Record amount of drugs seized
The bullet-riddled heads were found wrapped in black bags, and one of the victims was a teenager, the general said.
According to him, members of rival criminal gangs "
are in the process of eliminating each other
".
The impoverished province of Esmeraldas, which according to the government has "
the highest levels of insecurity in the country
", was placed in a state of emergency on March 3 by President Guillermo Lasso.
A curfew is in effect between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.
Located between Colombia and Peru - the world's main cocaine producers - Ecuador seized a record 210 tonnes of the drug in 2021, mostly cocaine.
In 2022, some 200 tons have been seized and the government has declared war on the traffickers who control the drug routes.