Prisoner escaped in a shootout at the Guayaquil hospital

Jessica Mercedes Solorzano Arteaga, Colombian, who was arrested last August 1, 2012, along with the former governor of Manabi, Cesar Fernandez, and four others in the case known as “Checkmate”, escaped yesterday after going to a hospital appointment in Guayaquil and after a shootout caused by her “rescuers.”

Solorzano, whose true identity would be “Argenesis Solarte”, had come to the hospital for care in the Mastology area, accompanied with other 2 prisoners and a minor, around 10:30, on a white pickup-truck from the Ministry of Justice, escorted by prison guards.

Everything seemed normal until after leaving the medical appointment and getting inside the escort vehicle, at approximately 12:00, an unknown armed man approached the vehicle, broke the driver’s side glass and pulled Solorzano out amid a flurry of bullets.

According to witnesses, it was learned that on the outside of the hospital four bikes were strategically placed around the perimeter, with a total of seven men, all with helmets. The subjects fired into the hospital while the “rescuer” helped Jessica Solorzano.

The hospital’s director, Juan Carlos Madera, revealed that the criminal action was brief and only lasted between a minute and a half to two minutes.

Outskirts of the Guayaquil Hospital after the shootout.