While efforts to improve security are focusing on tackling gangs in the streets, recent incidents indicate that high-level government dishonesty is also a significant barrier in the fight against organized crime.
On March 15, Ecuador’s Attorney General’s Office presented evidence against 13 suspects in the so-called Metastasis Case (Caso Metástasis), which Attorney General Diana Salazar has described as “the biggest in [Ecuador’s] history against corruption and drug trafficking.” described Suspects in the case include a former member of the National Assembly and a lead prosecutor for the province of Guayas, whose capital is central to the country’s drug trafficking economy.
The extensive anti-corruption probe is targeting a drug trafficking network previously led by Leandro Norero, a top ally of the gang before his demise in 2022. It was initially revealed to the public with raids of Ecuador’s Judicial Council, a body with the authority to suspend and remove judges, in December 2023. Prosecutors originally focused on 30 people associated with Norero’s network, but the number of defendants has now reached 52. GuayaquilProsecutors claim that officials from Ecuador’s judiciary, legislature, and security forces received bribes through Norero via his lawyers and other intermediaries in exchange for aiding him in maintaining his criminal empire while behind bars.
Additionally, corrupt judges allegedly postponed money laundering cases against Norero’s siblings after accepting bribes, while police and prosecutors on Norero’s payroll provided him with information about law enforcement crackdowns both within and outside prison. Lobos Norero also had connections as high as the former president of the Judicial Council, who “planned to buy the decisions of the national magistrates” to secure a favorable outcome in a money laundering case against Norero’s brother, according to the Attorney General’s Office. murder Metastasis’ findings have led to other investigations. On March 5, the Attorney General’s Office launched Caso Purga (Purge Case), based on texts seized from the phone of a Metastasis suspect. Prosecutors are investigating a dozen judicial officials and lawyers associated with the judicial system in the province of Guayas, for links to organized crime and drug trafficking. announced The anti-corruption efforts come as President Daniel Noboa’s crackdown on gangs enters its third month. Noboa’s militarized response is widely popular and has resulted in a nationwide decrease in homicides. However, concerns persist about criminal activity, especially in Guayaquil, where reports of extortion and kidnappings have significantly increased this year, according to police statistics reported by Ecuavisa.
Judges and Officials Fall as Ecuador Cleans House
InSight Crime Analysis
While most attention remains on the fight on the streets, the Ecuadorian government’s real struggle may be for control of the state.
Misconduct has always been present in Ecuador, but recent cases indicate a worrying increase in its significance, according to Melania Carrión, a security consultant and former government official specializing in prisons.
“In the past, there were officials associated with the drug issue,” she informed InSight Crime. announced "However, there was still regard for state institutions."
In recent years, parts of the prison system have been accused of assisting gangs in moving drugs, getting weapons, and running their criminal activities from prison. Corruption has also limited the effectiveness of murder investigations, while the number of killings in the country has increased from accessed 5.7 per 100,000
To address corruption, Noboa
proposed the establishment of a joint unit to investigate financial crimes on March 7. This move will enhance cooperation within Ecuador’s government to combat money laundering and other non-violent crimes. He also suggested changing the constitution to close a major legal loophole that allows criminals to delay their trials. Ecuadorians will vote on this change in a referendum on April 21.
Despite these actions, government corruption in Ecuador continues to be a significant challenge in reversing the progress of criminal groups. Large amounts of cocaine are being transported through Ecuador, and InSight Crime
suggests that only the Colombian cocaine entering the country may be valued at nearly one billion dollars for criminal groups who help store and move it through Ecuador. Lucrative
, kidnapping, and drug trafficking markets further strengthen gang finances, giving them the ability to bribe officials and in some cases even bring them under their influence.
Featured image: Police arrest drug trafficker Leandro Norero in 2022. Source: Ecuadorian National Police. navy, police, and While security operations are focusing on Ecuador’s street gangs, recent incidents indicate that high-level government corruption has also become a significant obstacle in the fight against organized crime. On March 15, Ecuador’s Attorney General’s Office presented evidence against 13 suspects in the so-called Metastasis Case, which Attorney General Diana Salazar has described as “the largest in [Ecuador’s] history against corruption and drug trafficking.” 5.7 per 100,000 in 2018 to 44.5 in 2023.
GameChangers 2023: Ecuador Loses Its Grip on Crime
As part of an attempt to address corruption, Noboa announced the creation of a joint financial crime investigation unit on March 7. The measure will increase collaboration within Ecuador’s government to fight money laundering and other white-collar crimes. He also proposed a constitutional amendment that seeks to close a prominent legal loophole, which allows criminals to stall their trials. Ecuadorians will vote on the amendment at a referendum on April 21.
But even with these measures, government corruption in Ecuador remains a formidable obstacle to reversing the advances of criminal groups. Record quantities of cocaine are flowing through Ecuador, and InSight Crime estimates that just the Colombian cocaine entering the country may be worth nearly one billion dollars to criminal groups helping to store and transport it through the country. Lucrative extortion, kidnapping, and drug dealing markets further bolster gang coffers, providing criminal groups with the means to bribe officials and sometimes even bring them into their fold.
Featured image: Police arrest drug trafficker Leandro Norero in 2022. Source: Ecuadorian National Police.