Latest news with #Noboa
NHK
5 days ago
- Business
- NHK
Ecuador says it needs both US, China
Ecuador's minister of foreign affairs and human mobility says the country needs to maintain balanced support for development from the United States and China. Gabriela Sommerfeld spoke to NHK in Tokyo on Thursday. She is the first Cabinet minister of the new administration of President Daniel Noboa to visit Japan. Noboa won reelection earlier this year. Sommerfeld said Ecuador needs more investments and trade, and for that purpose, the country has to keep good relations with its main markets, "which are, firstly the US, but secondly China." Noboa visited the US to meet President Donald Trump in March, ahead of Ecuador's presidential runoff. Noboa also made an official visit to China in June and held talks with President Xi Jinping. Asked about relations with Japan, Sommerfeld referred to more than 100 years of diplomatic relations. She expressed hope to expand areas for cooperation between the two countries and to promote Ecuador for investments from Japanese companies.
News18
21-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
Notorious Ecuadoran Drug Trafficker Adolfo Macias Pleads Not Guilty In US Court
Last Updated: The leader of the Los Choneros gang delivered his 'not guilty' plea in a federal court in Brooklyn through his lawyer and with the help of an interpreter, AFP reported. Notorious Ecuadoran drug trafficker Adolfo Macias has pleaded not guilty to narcotics charges in a court in the United States on Monday, nearly a month after he was arrested again after he escaped from a maximum security penitentiary in 2024. The leader of the Los Choneros gang delivered his 'not guilty" plea in a federal court in Brooklyn through his lawyer and with the help of an interpreter, AFP reported. The man denied seven charges, which included drug trafficking and arms trafficking – which is punishable by 20 years to life imprisonment. 'As alleged, the defendant served for years as the principal leader of Los Choneros, a notoriously violent transnational criminal organization, and was a ruthless and infamous drug and firearms trafficker," US attorney Joseph Nocella said in a statement ahead of hearing on Monday. 'The defendant and his co-conspirators flooded the United States and other countries with drugs and used extreme measures of violence in their quest for power and control." In April, the US Attorney's Office filed charges against Macias for allegedly being involved in cocaine trafficking, conspiracy, and gun-related crimes, including smuggling weapons. The flight carrying Macias from Ecuador arrived in New York state late Sunday. Last week, Macias—who was once a taxi driver but later became a crime leader—agreed in a court in Quito to be sent to the US to face these charges. Macias is the first person from Ecuador to be extradited under a new law passed last year. The law was approved after a public vote, where President Daniel Noboa asked citizens to support tougher action against criminal gangs. Ecuador, once a peaceful country located between Colombia and Peru—the world's top cocaine producers—has seen a rise in violence as rival gangs linked to Mexican and Colombian cartels fight for power. In January 2024, after Macias escaped from prison, President Noboa declared a state of 'internal armed conflict". He sent the military and tanks into the streets to take down the gangs. Macias's escape led to a wave of violence and a large operation by police and the military to catch him. The government even offered a $1 million reward for information that would lead to his capture. On June 25, Macias was found hiding in a bunker under floor tiles in a luxury house in Manta, a port city known as the base of his gang, Los Choneros. President Noboa said Macias should be extradited 'the sooner the better." (With AFP inputs) view comments First Published: July 21, 2025, 23:39 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Eyewitness News
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Ecuador's biggest drug lord 'Fito' pleads not guilty in US
NEW YORK - Notorious Ecuadoran drug trafficker Adolfo Macias, alias "Fito," pleaded not guilty to narcotics charges in a US court Monday, a month after he was recaptured following a 2024 escape from a maximum security penitentiary. The leader of the Los Choneros gang delivered his "not guilty" plea in a Brooklyn federal court through his lawyer and with the help of an interpreter, an AFP correspondent saw. He denied seven charges, including drug trafficking and arms trafficking, punishable by 20 years to life imprisonment. "As alleged, the defendant served for years as the principal leader of Los Choneros, a notoriously violent transnational criminal organization, and was a ruthless and infamous drug and firearms trafficker," US attorney Joseph Nocella said in a statement ahead of Monday's hearing. "The defendant and his co-conspirators flooded the United States and other countries with drugs and used extreme measures of violence in their quest for power and control." The US Attorney's Office filed charges in April against Macias on suspicion of cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms violations, including weapons smuggling. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X that the defendant "will soon face justice in the US for leading a vicious transnational criminal organization." The flight transporting Macias from Ecuador landed in New York state late Sunday. The former taxi driver turned crime boss agreed in a Quito court last week to be extradited to the United States to face the charges. GANG WARFARE Macias is the first Ecuadoran extradited by his country since a new measure was written into law last year, after a referendum in which President Daniel Noboa sought approval to intensify his war on criminal gangs. Ecuador, once a peaceful haven between the world's two top cocaine exporters, Colombia and Peru, has seen violence erupt in recent years as enemy gangs with ties to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control. Soon after Macias escaped from prison in January 2024, Noboa declared Ecuador to be in a state of "internal armed conflict" and ordered the military and tanks into the streets to "neutralize" the gangs. The move was criticized by human rights organizations. Los Choneros has ties to Mexico's Sinaloa cartel, Colombia's Gulf Clan - the world's largest cocaine exporter - and Balkan mafias, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory. Macias's escape from prison prompted widespread violence and a massive military and police recapture operation, including government "wanted" posters offering $1 million for information leading to his arrest. On 25 June, Macias was found hiding in a bunker concealed under floor tiles in a luxury home in the fishing port of Manta, the center of operations for Los Choneros. Noboa declared he would be extradited, "the sooner the better." "We will gladly send him and let him answer to the North American law," Noboa told CNN at the time. More than 70 percent of all cocaine produced in the world now passes through Ecuador's ports, according to government data. In 2024, the country seized a record 294 tons of drugs, mainly cocaine.
NDTV
21-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Ecuador's Biggest Drug Lord 'Fito', Recaptured After Prison Escape, Sent To US
The Ecuadoran government on Sunday extradited notorious drug trafficker Adolfo Macias, alias "Fito," to the United States, a month after he was recaptured following a 2024 escape from a maximum security penitentiary, the country's prison authority said. The flight transporting Macias landed in New York state on Sunday night, according to the Flightradar tracking site. The US Attorney's Office filed charges in April against Macias, the head of the "Los Choneros" gang, on suspicion of cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms violations, including weapons smuggling. A letter filed by the US Department of Justice on Sunday said Macias was due to appear in a federal court on Monday "for an arraignment on the Superseding Indictment in this case." The drug lord on Sunday was removed from custody at a maximum security prison in Ecuador's southwest "for the purposes that correspond to the extradition process," Ecuador's prison authority SNAI said in a statement to reporters. Macias, a former taxi driver turned crime boss, agreed in a Quito court last week to be extradited to the United States to face the charges. He is the first Ecuadoran extradited by his country since a new measure was written into law last year, after a referendum in which President Daniel Noboa sought the approval of moves to boost his war on criminal gangs. 'Sooner the better' Ecuador, once a peaceful haven between the world's two top cocaine exporters Colombia and Peru, has seen violence erupt in recent years as enemy gangs with ties to Mexican and Colombian cartels vie for control. Soon after Macias escaped from prison in January 2024, Noboa declared Ecuador to be in a state of "internal armed conflict" and ordered the military and tanks into the streets to "neutralize" the gangs. The move has been criticized by human rights organizations. Macias's Los Choneros has ties to Mexico's Sinaloa cartel, Colombia's Gulf Clan -- the world's largest cocaine exporter -- and Balkan mafias, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory. The crime boss' escape from prison prompted widespread violence and a massive military and police recapture operation, including government "wanted" posters offering $1 million for information leading to his arrest. On June 25, Macias was found hiding in a bunker concealed under floor tiles in a luxury home in the fishing port of Manta, the center of operations for Los Choneros. Noboa declared he would be extradited, "the sooner the better." "We will gladly send him and let him answer to the North American law," Noboa told CNN at the time. More than 70 percent of all cocaine produced in the world now passes through Ecuador's ports, according to government data. In 2024, the country seized a record 294 tons of drugs, mainly cocaine.
Saudi Gazette
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Powerful Ecuador drug lord 'Fito' extradited to US
WASHINGTON — The powerful Ecuadorean gang leader Adolfo Macías Villamar has been extradited to the United States to face charges of drug and arms trafficking. Known as "Fito", he was recaptured in June, almost a year after he escaped from a high-security prison where he was serving a 34-year sentence for a series of crimes. He will appear in a US federal court on Monday, where he will plead not guilty to international charges of drug and weapons trafficking, his lawyer told Reuters. Macías was leader of Los Choneros gang, which is linked to powerful criminal organisations from Mexico and the Balkans. He is also suspected of having ordered the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in 2023. Los Choneros is blamed for Ecuador's transformation from a tourist haven to a country with one of the highest murder rates in the region. More than 70% of all cocaine produced in the world currently passes through Ecuador's ports. The country is located between the world's two top cocaine exporters, Colombia and June, police tracked Macías down to what they described as an underground bunker below a luxury home in the city of Manta. He was taken to La Roca, a maximum security prison. At the time, Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa praised the security forces for capturing him and said that he would be extradited to the country's prison authority said he was taken out of prison in Ecuador earlier on Sunday to be handed over to US authorities."Mr Macías and I will appear tomorrow before the Brooklyn federal court ... where he will plead not guilty," his lawyer, Alexei Schacht, told Reuters. "After, he will be held in a to-be-determined prison."Ecuadoreans voted in favor of allowing the extradition of citizens in a referendum called by President Noboa, who vowed to crack down on rising March this year, Noboa told the BBC he wants US, European and Brazilian armies to join his "war" against criminal gangs. — BBC
