Colombian police captured the wife and daughter of José Adolfo Macías Villamar, the Ecuadorian gang leader known as “Fito,” in an operation announced Sunday. Both women are wanted in Ecuador on money laundering charges.
Officers took the two into custody in Sabana de Torres, a small town in northeastern Colombia, with support from the FBI and Ecuadorian authorities.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella announced the capture on X, framing it as a message to organized crime operating across borders.
“Colombia will not be a safe haven for the finances of transnational criminal groups,” de la Espriella wrote. “I will send these (women) with pleasure to my friend President Daniel Noboa, so that they face Ecuadorian justice.”
Macías Villamar escaped from a prison in Guayaquil, Ecuador, in January 2024. The breakout triggered a state of emergency, deadly prison riots, and chaos in Guayaquil, where armed gang members overran a television station during a live broadcast.
He was recaptured last year and extradited to the United States, where he now faces charges tied to importing thousands of pounds of cocaine. His organization, Los Choneros, was designated a terrorist group by the US State Department last year.
The capture of his family members comes as Ecuador continues to struggle against drug violence despite high-profile arrests and military deployments in major cities. The country’s homicide rate has quintupled since 2020, hitting a record 50 killings per 100,000 residents last year, according to the Interior Ministry.
President Noboa’s crackdown has drawn criticism from human rights groups over military abuses, including the killings of four children between the ages of 11 and 15 in 2024. Voters nonetheless reelected Noboa to a four-year term last year amid rising concern over crime.
