Ecuadorian presidential candidate  assassinated at campaign event

Credit:Reuters

An Ecuadorian presidential candidate known for speaking up against corruption was shot and killed Wednesday at a political rally in the capital amid a wave of startling violence in the South American country.

President Guillermo Lasso confirmed the assassination of Fernando Villavicencio and suggested organized crime was behind his slaying, less than two weeks before the Aug. 20 presidential election .

“I assure you that this crime will not go unpunished,” Lasso said in a statement. “Organised crime has gone too far, but they will feel the full weight of the law.”

Prior to the shooting, Villavicencio said he had received multiple death threats, including from leaders of Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, one of a slew of international organised crime groups that now operate in Ecuador.

Villavicencio was one of eight candidates, though not the frontrunner.The politician, 59, was the candidate for the Build Ecuador Movement.

Ecuador’s attorney general’s office said a suspect in the assassination of Villavicencio died of injuries after being arrested by authorities.

Violence in Ecuador, a historically calm country, has surged in the past year as drug traffickers have flocked to the South American nation, resulting in a concerning uptick in drug trafficking, violent killings and child recruitment by gangs.

Videos on social media appear to show the candidate walking out of the event surrounded by guards. The video then shows Villavicencio getting into a white pickup truck before gunshots are heard, followed by screams and commotion around the truck.

This sequence of events was confirmed to The Associated Press by Patricio Zuquilanda, Villavicencio’s campaign adviser.