Ecuador's most notorious drug lord extradited to US after recapture following prison escape

Washington DC [US], July 21 : Ecuador's infamous drug kingpin, Jose Adolfo Macias widely known as "Fito" has been extradited to the US, just one month after being recaptured following a high-profile prison escape that triggered widespread violence across Ecuador, CNN reported.

Macias was transferred from a high-security prison in Ecuador's Guayaquil to the city's airport, where he was handed over to the US officials who had arrived to oversee the extradition process, CNN reported, citing Ecuador's prison authorities.

According to CNN, as confirmed by aviation authorities, a US Department of Justice aircraft landed in Guayaquil in the Sunday afternoon (local time) and departed with Macias shortly thereafter.

Macias is the leader of Los Choneros, a powerful criminal organisation that the US has accused of trafficking large quantities of cocaine from Ecuador to other countries.

In April, a federal court in Brooklyn indicted him on seven counts related to drug trafficking and weapons smuggling, CNN reported.

In January 2024, Macias escaped from a Guayaquil prison, where he was serving a 34-year sentence for homicide and drug charges, triggering a surge of violence across the country, including a dramatic hostage situation at a national TV station during a live broadcast.

In response, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa declared an internal armed conflict and labelled Los Choneros and 21 other gangs as terrorist organisations, CNN reported.

Authorities recaptured Macias in June after a lengthy manhunt, finding him hidden in an underground bunker beneath a luxury villa in Manabi province, CNN reported.

In court documents filed in New York on Sunday, US prosecutors asked that Macias remain in custody until trial, citing both the danger he poses and his risk of fleeing.

The documents clarified that his extradition was strictly for the purpose of facing prosecution in the US.

His US attorney, Alexei Schacht, confirmed that Macias is expected to appear in Brooklyn Federal Court on Monday, though no specific time was given. If convicted, he faces a minimum sentence of 10 years and could receive life imprisonment.

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