The United States blocks the assets of alias ‘Fito’ and the Choneros

The United States Department of the Treasury reported, on the afternoon of this Wednesday, February 7, 2024, that it sanctioned alias ‘Fito’ and the terrorist group Los Choneros.

The United States blocked the assets of alias ‘Fito’.

“The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned one of the most violent gangs in Ecuador, Los Choneros, and José Adolfo Macías Villamar (also known by the alias of “Fito”), in accordance with the anti-narcotics authorities,” the statement begins.

What is the sanction?

All assets and interests in assets of the designated persons described above that are located in the United States or in the possession or control of US persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC.

In addition, all entities owned, directly or indirectly, individually or jointly, 50% or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized or exempt by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, OFAC regulations generally prohibit all transactions by or within the United States (or in transit through the United States) that involve property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. U.S. persons may face civil or criminal penalties for violating Executive Order 14059. 

“Today’s action is part of a government-wide effort to counter the global threat posed by illicit drug trafficking into the United States, which is causing the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans each year, as well as countless unsafe overdoses.” mortals. “OFAC, in coordination with its U.S. Government partners and foreign counterparts and in support of President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy, will continue to pursue and hold accountable foreign actors who traffic illicit drugs.” 

That is to say, these sanctions prevent access to all property and assets in the United States and to illicit resources generated by this criminal organization.

According to the text, the OFAC action comes after a sharp increase in violence in Ecuador due to the actions of Los Choneros and other drug trafficking gangs in the country.

“Drug trafficking gangs like Los Choneros, many of them with ties to powerful drug cartels in Mexico, threaten the lives and livelihoods of communities in Ecuador and throughout the region,” said the Undersecretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson.

This decision, he added, is to support Ecuador in its fight to combat drug trafficking, stop the proliferation of gangs and violence in prisons, and recover its streets.

The statement notes that Ecuador is experiencing record levels of gang-driven violence, including the August 2023 assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, a January 2024 armed attack on a local television station while it was broadcasting live, and the subsequent assassination of the prosecutor who was investigating that attack and widespread corruption.

“The Mexican Sinaloa cartel and the Jalisco Nueva Generación cartel have further fueled the violence by supporting rival drug trafficking gangs within Ecuador in their fight to control trafficking routes in the country.”

In context, the document adds, the last wave of violence broke out in January 2024, just two days after the Government of Ecuador discovered that José Adolfo Macías Villamar (“Fito”), head of the Ecuadorian gang Los Choneros, had disappeared. from his cell, just before his planned transfer to a maximum security facility.

“In response to his escape, the Government of Ecuador declared a state of emergency for 60 days, triggering new prison riots and gang attacks across the country, including kidnappings and bomb attacks. On January 9, 2024, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa declared Ecuador in a state of internal armed conflict.”