Key Takeaways
- Six foreign suspects were detained after the presidential candidate assassination in Quito.
- The suspects are linked to organized crime groups and were found hiding in a house.
- Interior Minister Juan Zapata labeled the act a “political crime of a terrorist nature” and promised further investigation.
Quito: Six suspects were arrested in connection with the assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio.
Authorities also confirmed that another suspect, who was shot dead, was a foreigner.
All six arrested individuals are foreigners, according to the police report released on Thursday.
The six weaponized suspects, all members of organized crime groups, were captured hiding in a house in Quito, the country’s capital, said a police report.
Describing the killing as “a political crime of a terrorist nature,” Ecuadorian Interior Minister Juan Zapata confirmed all suspects are foreigners without revealing their nationalities.
The minister noted that the police will continue investigating and seeking a motive for the crime.
Fernando Villavicencio, Ecuador’s candidate for the presidential election later this month, was killed on Wednesday in an armed attack following a political rally in Quito.
