Prosecutor shot dead in Ecuador

An Ecuadorian prosecutor was murdered Thursday by gunmen in one of the country's most violent cities, the same day the state's attorney general received death threats, an official source said. Prosecutor Leonardo Palacios died "after an attack perpetrated against him today" in the city of Duran, near Guayaquil, the prosecutor's office said on Twitter.

He added that the official was assaulted after attending "a trial hearing against two murder defendants." While he was driving his car, individuals intercepted him and opened fire on him.

Death threat

A prosecutor's secretary who was also in the car was not injured, Duran police chief Jorge Hadathy told reporters. Palacios' murder took place on the same day that the state's attorney general, Diana Salazar, received death threats via a video sent by Whatsapp and broadcast by local media. It shows at least six people armed with guns, dressed in black and with hidden faces.

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You're going to celebrate a birthday, I don't want to ruin your party by killing your daughter," says a man's voice in the video received by the prosecutor, known for prosecuting former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa (2007-2017) for corruption.

Ecuador is facing an increase in criminal violence and drug trafficking, with a homicide rate of 25 per 100,000 inhabitants. Last year, two prosecutors and a judge were shot dead in different parts of the country.