MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Car bomb goes off in Ecuador – no victims this time around

Organized crime is making territorial gains nationwide

Nobody was injured as a car bomb went off in front of a Guayaquil police precinct, it was reported Sunday.

Police acting spokesman Maximiliano Maldonado added there were only small “small damages” to a patrol car parked adjacently, while one suspect has been arrested in connection with the incident.

Maldonado also admitted the attack might be linked to the gang Los Tiguerones, who allegedly wrote their name on the vehicle and were apparently waging revenge against police officers. Los Tiguerones is one of the most dangerous gangs in the country and it has been reported to have operational capabilities from inside prisons.

Uncorroborated reports said the car bomb had been abandoned by unidentified people who fled on a motorcycle. The bombing comes one month after an attack on the prison of Guayaquil, under the same modality and also without victims.

Other media throughout Ecuador recalled this was the fifth such explosion this month in the country in the provinces of Esmeraldas and Guayaquil.

Ecuadorian authorities reported Sunday the explosion of a car bomb outside a police barracks in La Florida, in the north of Guayaquil after police forces cleaned graffiti and symbols from the criminal organizations.

”The National Police is investigating what happened in the Community Surveillance Unit (UVC) La Florida in Guayaquil,” said Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo.

After the event, the Ecuadorian National Police reported the deployment of its specialized and intelligence units to locate those involved in the detonation of the explosive device.

According to local media, the use of explosives and car bombs is on the rise as organized crime makes territorial gains in Ecuador, amid a streak of prison massacres, which have resulted in over 400 inmates killed since 2020.