A ‘Most Wanted’ criminal has been found in an underground bunker in a luxury home.
José Adolfo Macías Villamar, alias ‘Fito’, escaped from prison in late 2023.
The 45-year-old now faces possible extradition to the US on seven charges issued against him in April this year.
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The suspected leader of Los Choneros, Ecuador’s largest and oldest criminal gang, was convicted of murder and supplying the Mexican Sinaloa Cartel with tons of cocaine in 2011.
Ecuador’s most wanted man was recaptured in his hometown of Manta in the coastal province of Manabí, the birthplace and stronghold of Los Choneros, on Wednesday (25 Jun).
The Ecuadorian Army shared images of its impressive hideout on social media.
Interior Minister John Reimberg said soldiers used an excavator to access the bunker during a 10-hour military operation.
Fito was detained along with four other men who were reportedly guarding him.
President Daniel Noboa called Fito one of the main targets of his “war” against organised crime in the country, which has one of the highest homicide rates in Latin America.
He added: “We have done our part to proceed with Fito’s extradition to the United States; we are awaiting their response.”
The government had issued a £727,730 ($1 million) reward for information leading to the gang leader’s arrest, as reported by Need To Know.
Fito escaped from Guayaquil Regional Prison 18 months ago, and the trail went cold on his recapture.
Earlier this month, several members of his inner circle, including his brother and relatives of his partner, were arrested for allegedly laundering at least £17.5 million ($24 million).
Following his recapture, Fito was taken to Ecuador’s maximum-security La Roca prison in Guayaquil to resume his 34-year sentence for drug trafficking, murder, and organised crime, imposed in 2011.
In April, the US government issued seven charges against Fito, including conspiracy to distribute cocaine internationally, use of firearms, and smuggling arms.
The US Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Los Choneros and their leader in February 2024.
Brian E. Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said: “Drug trafficking gangs such as Los Choneros, many with ties to powerful drug cartels in Mexico, threaten the lives and livelihoods of communities in Ecuador and throughout the region.
“We stand in support of Ecuador in its fight to combat drug trafficking, curb the proliferation of prison gangs and prison violence, and take back its streets.”
The extradition process to the US is ongoing.
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