Five individuals have been sentenced to prison for their involvement in the assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, who was murdered by gunmen on motorcycles last year.
Villavicencio, 59, a former journalist, was killed on August 9 as he exited a school in Quito, Ecuador’s capital, following a campaign rally.
The attack also injured thirteen people.
On Friday, two individuals identified as instigators received sentences of 34 years and eight months each, while three accomplices were sentenced to 12 years each.
Prosecutors accused at least two of those convicted of being members of the Los Lobos crime gang, one of 22 criminal organizations designated as terrorists by President Daniel Noboa in January.
The prosecutor’s office revealed that one of the instigators, Carlos Angulo, alias “Invisible”, coordinated the assassination from prison, giving instructions via videoconference to another individual, with the communication being recorded on mobile phones.
This individual has not yet been tried.
Laura Castillo, the other instigator, was responsible for providing the gunmen with logistical support, including motorcycles and money.
The three accomplices – Erick Ramírez, Víctor Flores, and Alexandra Chimbo – were tasked with monitoring Villavicencio’s movements and alerting the killers, according to prosecutors.
The prosecutor’s office had sought the maximum sentence for the five defendants.
Angulo and Castillo were also ordered to pay $100,000 each in compensation to Villavicencio’s family, while the other three defendants were ordered to pay $33,000 each.
As the judges announced the sentences, family and friends of Villavicencio held a demonstration in Quito, carrying posters, photographs, and flags in his memory.
Villavicencio was known for his journalism, which exposed corruption and links between organized crime and politicians.
Although he had reported receiving threats, authorities have not disclosed the motive for his killing.
In total, 13 people were accused in connection with the case, including several Colombians who were murdered in prisons in Guayaquil and Quito last October while in pre-trial detention.
The ruling, delivered by Milton Maroto, one of the court’s three judges, can be appealed by both the prosecution and the defense.
Prosecutors are also conducting a separate investigation to determine who ordered the murder.