Homicides in Ecuador fall 27.7% in May under internal armed conflict state
Ecuador recorded 676 homicides in May 2026, compared with 935 in the same month of 2025. Robberies and other crimes also declined, according to the Interior Ministry.
Ecuador reduces homicides by 27.7% in May compared to 2025
Ecuador recorded 676 homicides in May 2026, compared with 935 recorded in the same month of 2025, representing a decline of 27.7%, according to infobae.com. The comparison is made against the most violent period in the country's recent history.
The Interior Ministry attributed the reduction, in part, to the implementation of a night-time curfew in nine of the 24 provinces and in four other municipalities during the first half of May.
Widespread decline in property crimes
Security operations deployed against criminal groups also had an impact on property crimes. Robberies of persons fell by 43%, dropping from 2,449 cases in May 2025 to 1,399 this year. Motorcycle thefts recorded the same percentage of decline, with 975 incidents compared to 1,700 in the previous year, according to the official statement.
The state portfolio also reported a 54% decrease in vehicle and auto-parts thefts, a 35% decrease in home robberies, a 46% decrease in robberies of business units, and a 56% decrease in robberies on major roads.
Noboa: "You will tire before I do"
President Daniel Noboa celebrated the figures in a video published on his Instagram account. "We will continue fighting. To the mafias: you will tire before I do," said the president, who stressed that the country is "recovering" from the wave of crime.
In terms of arrests, the Interior Ministry reported that in May two high-value targets were apprehended, double that of the same month in 2025. Arrests of intermediate-value targets rose from 10 to 100 in that same period.
"Anti-mafia law" bill presented to the Assembly
Parallel to the security report, the First Vice President of the National Assembly, Mishel Mancheno, presented a draft reform called the "Anti-mafia law", aimed at toughening penalties against members of criminal groups and strengthening the state's response to organised crime.
"This is a law that weakens gangs, protects citizens and strengthens the state's capacity to respond to organised crime," Mancheno said during the presentation. The initiative proposes amendments to the Penal Code, the Judicial Function Code and the Asset Forfeiture Act.
Amongst the measures contemplated is the creation of an autonomous criminal offence of membership in an organised crime group, as well as sanctions for recruiting persons, use of infrastructure for criminal purposes and illegal fuel theft.
The bill also establishes the obligation to justify in a reinforced manner any refusal of preventive detention in cases linked to organised crime, money laundering, terrorism, human trafficking, extortionate kidnapping and contract killing. Those convicted of money laundering or other crimes linked to organised crime will be barred from practising law.
The presentation event brought together the Interior Minister, John Reimberg; the Deputy Defence Minister, Roberto Quintero; the Ambassador of Italy in Ecuador, Giovanni Davoli; and the Director of the Narcotics Affairs Office of the United States Embassy, Charles Morrill.
Context: internal armed conflict state since 2024
Ecuador has remained since 2024 under a state of "internal armed conflict", declared by Noboa to confront criminal organisations which the Executive classifies as "terrorist". Despite the measures adopted, the country closed 2025 with a record 9,281 murders, a rate higher than 50 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.
Source: Google News EC — Crime