The notorious Ecuadorian drug lord ‘Fito’ agreed on Friday to his extradition to the United States. He is accused in the US of, among other things, arms trafficking, drug trafficking, and conspiracy. He was re-arrested in June after an impactful escape.
If ‘Fito’ had refused, the case could have taken months longer, as the Supreme Court would ultimately have had to rule on his extradition.
José Adolfo Macías Villamar, ‘Fito’s’ real name, is the leader of Los Choneros, the Ecuadorian branch of the Mexican Sinaloa cartel. He escaped from a high-security prison in the port city of Guayaquil in January 2024. He was only recently re-arrested after a months-long manhunt.
The escape of ‘Fito’ led to a wave of violence, in which about twenty people were killed. Riots broke out in several prisons and the violence spread quickly, according to the Spanish newspaper El País. There were explosions and terrorist attacks in several cities in Ecuador. President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency and deployed the army to prisons and on the streets.
‘Fito’ was arrested approximately 1.5 years after his escape in his hometown of Manta, in the province of Manabí on the west coast of Ecuador. That is also where the Los Cheneros gang originated. He was hiding in a camouflaged bunker in a house in the city center.
‘Fito’ also escaped in 2013
It was not the first time that ‘Fito’ escaped from prison. He also did so in 2013. Then he escaped with seventeen others. They fled together by boat via the river next to the prison complex. Four months later, he and his brother, who is also part of the gang, were arrested at their mother’s house.
‘Fito’ is seen as one of the most dangerous drug criminals in Ecuador. He is suspected of being involved in the murder of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in August 2023, among other things.