Bloody day in Esmeraldas and Santo Domingo: three people murdered and taxi driver missing
During Sunday, 5 July, Ecuadorian authorities documented three targeted killings and the apparent abduction of a taxi driver in areas of Santo Domingo and the city of Esmeraldas.
Bloody day in Esmeraldas and Santo Domingo: three people murdered and taxi driver missing
During Sunday, 5 July, Ecuadorian authorities documented three targeted killings and the apparent abduction of a taxi driver in areas of Santo Domingo and the city of Esmeraldas, according to a report published by El Universo.
The first incident occurred at approximately two thirty in the morning in the 16 de Marzo cooperative in Santo Domingo. An individual whose identity remains unknown—listed in records as NN—was enjoying alcoholic beverages in the company of other people when, without warning, someone arrived at the scene and stabbed him with a sharp weapon. The attacker fled the location immediately. Residents alerted ECU911, prompting law enforcement officers and paramedics to arrive; however, the injured man had already suffered severe internal bleeding and died from his injuries. Those who were with the victim when the incident occurred fled the scene, so investigators are seeking witnesses and evidence to locate the perpetrator.
Later, at approximately six thirty in the morning, another murder was reported at the intersection of Avenida Río Lelia and Los Eucaliptos. The victim's name was Gary M. I. S. and he was 38 years old. He had just left a nightclub when two men travelling on a motorcycle approached him. The attackers opened fire, apparently with a rifle, striking him in the head and killing him instantly. The forensic team collected six spent casings and one intact projectile at the scene, pieces that will help identify the perpetrators. Geovanny Arguello, who serves as interim chief of Subzone 23 of Santo Domingo, explained that the establishment the deceased had left had been inspected in the early morning hours to ensure it closed at the proper time; nevertheless, those in charge reportedly simulated closure by keeping the main door shut while continuing to admit customers inside.
In the city of Esmeraldas, during Sunday afternoon, in the San Rafael sector of the Familias Unidas neighbourhood, a man in his forties named Daniel Sánchez and nicknamed "Pinto" lost his life after being struck by a projectile in the chest. The deceased was drinking alcohol alongside several people in an area behind an educational facility when a heated quarrel ended in gunfire. Sánchez was rushed to hospital, where medical staff certified his death due to the severity of the injury. Forensic officers and National Police personnel cordoned off the area to collect evidence. Some residents told journalists that the killer could be an active-duty member of the security forces, although officials have not validated this hypothesis, which forms part of the open investigations.
On the other hand, on Saturday in the afternoon, at approximately six thirty, whilst conducting surveillance patrols in the Luz de América 2 sub-circuit, on Avenida 2 de Agosto, uniformed officers received notice from a pedestrian about a .38 calibre revolver hidden in the vegetation. The officers corroborated the information, seized the weapon—which contained five unfired rounds—and sent it under strict custody to Judicial Police storage facilities for the relevant analysis.
Source: Google News DO — Santo Domingo