Fernando Villavicencio, presidential candidate in Ecuador, assassinated; suspect dead

QUITO — Fernando Villavicencio, a candidate for president in Ecuador, was assassinated on Wednesday during a campaign event. He was 59.

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Villavicencio was fatally shot in Quito, according to President Guillermo Lasso. The president said killers would be prosecuted, The Guardian reported.

Suspect killed, authorities say

Update 10:17 p.m. EDT Aug. 9: Ecuador’s attorney general’s office said a suspect in the assassination died of wounds after being arrested by authorities, The Associated Press reported.

Videos on social media appear to show Fernando Villavicencio walking out of an event surrounded by guards, according to the news organization. The video then shows the candidate entering a white truck followed by gunfire.

That information was confirmed to the AP by Patricio Zuquilanda, Villavicencio’s campaign adviser, who said that the candidate had received death threats prior to the shooting that had been reported to authorities.

Original report: Villavicencio was a former journalist who was among eight candidates running for office, according to The New York Times.

“I assure you that this crime will not go unpunished,” Lasso said in a statement, according to The Associated Press. “Organized crime has gone too far, but they will feel the full weight of the law.”

Villavicencio was the candidate for the Build Ecuador Movement, The Guardian reported. He had criticized corruption in Ecuador, particularly during the administration of former President Rafael Correa, who served from 2007 to 2017.

Villavicencio was married and is survived by five children, according to the AP.

Videos on social media, allegedly from the campaign event, showed people taking cover and screaming as shots rang out, The Guardian reported.

Villavicencio had been at a local high school, where he had addressed young supporters, according to the Times.

Carlos Figueroa, a member of Villavicencio’s campaign who was at the rally, said he witnessed the shooting.

“When he stepped outside the door, he was met with gunfire,” Figueroa told the newspaper. “There was nothing to be done, because they were shots to the head.”

The candidate’s death comes amid an upswing of violence in the South American country, along with increased drug trafficking.

“For his memory and his fight, I assure you that this crime will not remain unpunished,” Lasso said on X, formerly known as Twitter.