Prosecutors in Ecuador have charged former interior minister José Serrano and six other individuals, including Wilmer "Pipo" Chavarria, the head of the Los Lobos cartel, on suspicion of involvement in the 2023 assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. Villavicencio was murdered at a campaign event in Quito days before the election.
The seven individuals named by the Ecuadorean Attorney General's Office on Saturday are accused of playing an indirect role in the killing. Many of those accused reportedly have links to Los Lobos, one of Ecuador's most powerful criminal gangs.
Five of the accused are currently considered fugitives. Serrano and Xavier Jordán are located in the US, former assemblyman Ronny Aleaga is in Venezuela, and Pipo remains in Spain with an extradition request pending. The Attorney General's Office has requested Interpol red notices for their capture and extradition.
Ángel Esteban Aguilar, also known as Lobo Menor, was arrested in Mexico City in March and returned to Ecuador after a red notice was issued in connection with Villavicencio's murder. Luis Arboleda, a senior Los Lobos member, is also among the accused.
Pre-trial hearings are currently taking place, where a judge will decide whether prosecutors have sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to a full trial.