US Sanctions Ecuadorian Gang Los Choneros and its Leader “Fito”

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The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned one of Ecuador’s most violent gangs, Los Choneros, and its leader, José Adolfo Macías Villamar (also known by the alias “Fito”), under counter-narcotics authorities. OFAC’s action follows a steep rise in violence in Ecuador attributed to the actions of Los Choneros and other drug trafficking gangs in the country.

“Drug trafficking gangs such as Los Choneros, many with ties to powerful drug cartels in Mexico [Sinaloa Cartel], threaten the lives and livelihoods of communities in Ecuador and throughout the region,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. “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.”

Ecuador is experiencing record levels of gang-driven violence, including the August 2023 assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, a January 2024 armed attack on a local TV network while it was broadcasting live, and the subsequent assassination of the prosecutor investigating that attack and widespread corruption. Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación have further fueled the violence by backing rival drug trafficking gangs within Ecuador as they battle to control trafficking routes in the country.

The latest wave of violence broke out in January 2024, just two days after the Government of Ecuador discovered José Adolfo Macías Villamar (Macías Villamar), the head of the Ecuadorian gang Los Choneros, missing from his prison cell—just ahead of his planned move to a maximum-security facility.

In response to his escape, the Government of Ecuador declared a 60-day state of emergency, which sparked additional prison riots and gang attacks across the country, including kidnappings and bombings. On January 9, 2024, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa declared Ecuador to be in a state of internal armed conflict.

Los Choneros

Los Choneros, one of Ecuador’s most violent criminal organizations, has been involved in drug trafficking in Ecuador since the 1990s and is a key driver of the escalating violence that has plagued Ecuador since 2020. Los Choneros has also been running operations from inside state and federal penitentiaries throughout the country. With support from the Sinaloa Cartel, Los Choneros gained control of key cocaine trafficking routes through Ecuador. In return, Los Choneros allegedly provided security and logistics services to the Sinaloa Cartel.

Macías Villamar, also known by the alias “Fito,” is a founding member of Los Choneros and has been the group’s sole leader since 2020. In 2011, the Government of Ecuador sentenced him to 34 years in prison for crimes that included murder and drug trafficking. In prison, Macías Villamar enjoyed access to cell phones and the internet, which enabled him to continue to direct the activities of Los Choneros and publish external communications, including a music video posted to social media challenging the Ecuadorian government.

Separately, a $5 million reward offer from the U.S. Department of State remains in place for information leading to the arrest or conviction of co-conspirators and masterminds behind the August 2023 assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. The U.S. Department of State issued this reward on September 28, 2023, under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program.

Sources OFAC