Jose Adolfo Macias, better known by his alias “Fito,” and long considered Ecuador’s most dangerous criminal, has been captured after a months-long manhunt that gripped the nation and exposed the full reach of cartel power inside the country’s institutions.

Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa confirmed the arrest Wednesday, calling it a “key step” in restoring public order and dismantling the sprawling criminal networks that have plagued the country in recent years.

Who Is Fito?

Fito is the longtime leader of Los Choneros, one of Ecuador’s most powerful and violent drug gangs. Originally formed as a prison gang in the late 1990s, Los Choneros evolved into a dominant force in Ecuador’s underworld, building close ties with international cartels — including Mexico’s Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels — and playing a major role in drug trafficking routes between South America and the United States and Europe.

Macias had been serving a 34-year sentence for homicide, drug trafficking, and organized crime, locked away in La Regional prison in Guayaquil, a city that has become a flashpoint in Ecuador’s escalating security crisis.

The Escape That Shook Ecuador

In January 2024, just days after President Noboa took office, Fito vanished from his prison cell. The escape, believed to have been facilitated by corrupt guards and inside help, triggered chaos across the country. Explosions, targeted assassinations, and violent prison riots erupted in multiple provinces. Armed gangs even stormed a TV station during a live broadcast — a chilling display of how emboldened criminal networks had become.

In response, Noboa took the unprecedented step of declaring an “internal armed conflict” and labeling Los Choneros and 21 other gangs as terrorist organizations, giving security forces expanded powers to confront them with military force.

The prison system, long known to be under the influence of drug lords like Fito, was placed under military control. Noboa vowed to regain control of the country and pledged sweeping reforms to root out corruption and fortify Ecuador’s crumbling justice system.

International Attention and U.S. Involvement

Fito’s escape and the subsequent violence didn’t go unnoticed abroad. In February 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Macias and Los Choneros under its drug kingpin statute, citing their role in large-scale narcotics trafficking and transnational violence.

Now that Fito is back in custody, Ecuador is pushing for his extradition to the United States, President Noboa said Wednesday. The request is pending approval from U.S. officials.

A Symbolic Victory — But the War Isn’t Over

While Fito’s capture is a high-profile win for Noboa’s administration, experts warn that it’s unlikely to bring an immediate end to the violence or dismantle the networks that made his escape possible.

Los Choneros and other criminal groups have become deeply entrenched, not only in drug trafficking but in extortion, illegal mining, and political intimidation. Violence in Ecuador has skyrocketed in recent years, with homicide rates now among the highest in Latin America.

Still, the arrest sends a powerful message at home and abroad — that the government is willing to confront organized crime head-on.

For many Ecuadorians, however, the memory of Fito walking free from prison — and the bloodshed that followed — is still raw. His return to custody is a start. Whether it marks a turning point remains to be seen.

Source: CNN – Drug kingpin ‘Fito,’ Ecuador’s most wanted man, has been captured, says Ecuador’s president

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