Fugitive leader of violent Ecuadorian drug gang is indicted in New York City

NEW YORK (AP) — The fugitive leader of a violent Ecuadorian gang that relied on hitmen, bribes and military weapons to do business has been indicted in New York City on charges he imported thousands of pounds of cocaine into the United States, authorities said Wednesday.

José Adolfo Macías Villamar escaped from a prison in Ecuador last year and is not in U.S. custody. He led Los Choneros and its “network of assassins and drug and weapon traffickers” since at least 2020, U.S. Attorney John Durham said in a news release.

“The defendant was a ruthless leader and prolific drug trafficker for a violent transnational criminal organization,” Durham said.

With an extensive criminal record including charges of murder and organized crime, Macías, whose nickname is “Fito,” has cultivated a cult status among fellow gang members and the public in his home country. While behind bars in 2023, he released a video addressed to “the Ecuadorian people” while flanked by armed men. He also threw parties in prison, where he had access to everything from liquor to roosters for cockfighting matches.

The seven-count indictment unsealed in Brooklyn charges Macías and an unidentified co-defendant with international cocaine distribution, conspiracy and weapons counts, including smuggling firearms from the United States.

Los Choneros employed people to buy firearms, components and ammunition in the United States and smuggle them into Ecuador, according to the indictment. Cocaine would flow into the United States with the help of Mexican cartels. Together, the groups controlled key cocaine trafficking routes through Ecuador, violently targeting law enforcement, politicians, lawyers and civilians who stood in the way.

“Los Choneros operated a vast network responsible for the shipment and distribution of multi-ton quantities of cocaine from South America through Central America and Mexico to the United States and elsewhere,” the indictment says. “The vast majority of drugs trafficked by Los Choneros were imported into the United States, where the drugs were consumed.”

In January 2024, Macías was discovered missing from his prison cell in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where he was serving a 34-year sentence for drug trafficking. Last year, the U.S. classified Los Choneros as one of the most violent gangs and affirmed its connection to powerful Mexican drug cartels who threaten Ecuador and the surrounding region.

Authorities in Ecuador have classified the gang as a terrorist organization. Earlier this month, the Ecuadorian government announced the reward for the capture of Macías would be increased to $1 million.

—

Thompson reported from Buffalo, N.Y.

—

This story has been updated to correct that the location of the prison where José Adolfo Macías Villamar escaped is in Guayaquil, Ecuador, not in Quito, Ecuador.