The three defendants were arrested on February 21 during an operation in Huaquillas and Machala, where 10 properties were raided.
The investigation led by a unit of the Azuay Prosecutor’s Officewithin a case of organized crime, resulted in the arrest of Kevyn Estiven G., Yéssica Emperatriz C. and Javier Favián M.
The Specialized Judge for the Prosecution of Crimes Related to Corruption and Organized Crime issued a preventive detention order against the defendants and a prohibition on the sale of their assets.
In the proceedings, the Prosecutor of the National Specialized Investigation Unit against Transnational Crime (Unidot)-Azuay explained that during the investigation – which began in March 2023 – the existence of a criminal group operating in the sector was evident. “The Salt†of canton Huaquillas (El Oro), where an illegal passage was enabled (placing boards over the international channel), whose purpose was to extort money from those who smuggled merchandise between Ecuador and Peru.
Criminal organization arrested
It is presumed that Kevyn Estiven G. led these activities and gave orders to the other members of the organization, including Javier Favián M., who spent most of the time in this place, as he would have been in charge of control the collection of money enabling illegal passage. In addition, he would have coordinated the delivery of firearms that were used in the commission of crimes.
The money collected was deposited in the accounts of Yéssica Emperatriz C., who – in addition – carried out other activities that her partner, Kevyn Estiven G. -(I) provided.