After the Presidential Candidate, Ecuadorian Politician Shot Dead 6 Days Before the Election. Incidents of assassinations of political figures have occurred again in Ecuador. On Monday (14/8), a local politician was killed by unknown persons six days before the general election on August 20. Member of the People’s Revolutionary Party, Pedro Briones, was killed by unknown gunmen. Briones is one of the movement’s leaders in Esmeraldas Province near the Colombian border. So far neither the local police nor the local government have confirmed the attack. But local Ecuadorian media said the victim was shot at his home in the town of San Mateo by two men on motorbikes who then fled
My solidarity with the family of Pedro Briones, new victims of violence in Ecuador,”
said one of Ecuador’s presidential candidates, Luisa Gonzales, as quoted by AFP. Gonzales added, Ecuador is going through its bloodiest period yet. He also called the government incompetent, because Ecuador “has been taken over” by organized crime gangs. The Briones killing came less than a week after Ecuador’s presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was also shot after campaigning in the capital Quito. Villavicencio was shot dead when he was about to leave the campaign location last Wednesday (9/8). Ecuadorian police said the shooter was a Colombian citizen.
According to police information, the suspect who died on the spot was a
recidivist who had been arrested on weapons-related charges last July. The other six suspects are members of an organized crime group. The incident caused an uproar in Ecuador because Villavicencio is one of eight presidential candidates in the elections which will take place on August 20. There has been speculation about Villavicencio’s death. Some linked this case to the 59-year-old man’s policy of wanting to eradicate drug cartels. He is also known to be vocal in combating corruption and loudly voicing the state’s depravity, especially regarding corruption.
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