In the cell where he was incarcerated, drug lord Adolfo “Fito” Macias lived like a king. But one day he disappeared, and his escape declared a state of emergency in Ecuador as the government scrambled to regain control of gang-run prisons.
President Daniel Noboa has vowed to stamp out the violence and restore order, but three months after his escape, Macias, 44, leader of the notorious Los Choneros gang, has yet to be caught.
Fito was serving a 34-year sentence for drug trafficking and murder. His escape in January took place on the day he was scheduled to be moved from La Regional prison to a maximum security facility.
Despite being behind bars, he still coordinated the activities of the Los Choneros gang. He also had mobile phone and internet access, watched TV and even had pets, according to Sky News.
“His cell was basically like a hotel room”, Annette Idler, professor of global security at the University of Oxford, told the quoted source. “Even women were brought to him. His cell was a luxury room“, she also said.
The walls of the cell were painted with his face.
Video filmed behind bars
Fito even appeared in a professionally produced music video. Several sequences were filmed in the prison where he was. In the clip, the trafficker was called “el jefe y patron” – the boss.
Authorities have been unable to explain how it was possible for an entire camera crew to gain access and film one of Ecuador’s most notorious criminals. The video, El Corrido del Leon – The Ballad of the Lion – has garnered nearly 900,000 views on YouTube.
“He was glorified as a good and honest man… How could this happen?”said John Murdy, a doctoral student at the University of Chicago who has studied prisons in Ecuador for years.
Idler stated that this was possible because of the corruption in the Ecuadorian prison system, the small number of guards who are always under pressure.
Silver or lead?
“It’s something inspired by Pablo Escobar: the choice between silver and lead. Either they get bribed or they get shot”Idler said.
“Plata o plomo”, Escobar’s motto, was also inscribed on the walls of Fito’s cell.
Guards working in overcrowded and under-supported prisons are vulnerable to this kind of pressure from gangs, who can find out where their families live and often end up on their payroll.
Unable to fully control their prisons, the authorities resorted to selecting new inmates based on gang affiliation.
“In fact, the Ecuadorian state gives even more power to gangs in prisons, and they are able to consolidate their power and have a base of operations”says Murdy. “They can get hold of weapons like machine guns, machetes and even bombs,” he also said.
Los Choneros, the Fito gang, is one of those the authorities hold responsible for an increase in violence that reached unprecedented levels last year with the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio.
When Fito escaped from La Regional prison on January 7 – his second escape – the news spread around the world.
Roberto Izurieta, the president’s press secretary, said there was “most likely” a leak that led to the escape.
Embarrassing moment for the president
The breakout was “like an egg thrown at the new president,” says Murdy. “Fito somehow found out about the plan to be moved from a very high level and managed to escape without a shot being fired.”
Prof. Idler said the escape was not much of a surprise since Fito was in control.
And three months later, he’s still at large.
“On the one hand, it’s surprising, because Ecuador works with the US and Colombia, which have good intelligence services, and this should help find him”Idler also mentioned.
Endemic corruption
Idler added that because of “endemic corruption” in Ecuador Fito will be hard to find. “It’s not clear where he went, actually. Given that these criminal organizations operate across borders, it is very likely that he is very well protected by his network not only within Ecuador, but also in a wider area.”Idler said.
There has been speculation that he may be heading to Argentina, where he has moved his wife and children. But they were deported back to Ecuador a few weeks after Fito’s escape.
Amid suspicions that they might pass through Peru to reach Bolivia, the Peruvian government has stepped up controls along the border.
“The eyes of the authorities are on him, but it is very possible that he is hiding somewhere in the region”Idler also specified.
It remains to be seen when or if Fito will be caught. And even if he is caught there is a risk that he will escape again, given the fact that he has already done so twice.
Publisher: DC
Tags: Fito story notorious criminal Ecuador escaped prison lived king
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