Latest news with #RodrigoChavez
Daily Mirror
24-04-2025
- Daily Mirror
Major update after 'Brit' dragged into street and burned alive in horror Amazon lynching
An unnamed man was dragged out of a police station in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve in the South American country's Amazon region and burned alive by a baying mob A man who is believed to be English was lynched and burned alive in the Amazon as his alleged crime has now been revealed. The unnamed man was dragged out of a police station in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve and burned alive by a baying mob armed with guns and weapons. It has now emerged the man was being held by police on suspicion of shooting a local man dead. The alleged British national is said to have been handed over to police by locals around 6am local time on Sunday before being murdered just after midday. Local media said officers who arrested him decided not to intervene when a mob of around 200 people forced their way into the police station. They decided to stand back in order to avoid being attacked themselves and to avoid damage to the property, according to Ecuadorian newspaper Extra. A local TV station said: "In the early hours of Sunday, April 20, in the parish of Playas de Cuyabeno, at the closure of an event that took place for the anniversary of the Kichwa community, an incident occurred where as a result two people died. 'Those two people were a community member from the area and another person of British nationality who died due to the severity of his burns." The shooting victim has been named as Rodrigo Chavez. A third man was reportedly arrested over the man's killing. Police chief covering Ecuador's Sucumbios province said: 'We are still trying to establish the specific identity of the citizen we believe is a British national. 'I say we're presuming he's English although we don't have documents that prove his nationality status. We're trying to confirm all the information including his migration status. 'We don't have any proven information relating to how long he had been in this community. We know that he was working and teaching English and was making reservations for tourists visiting the area but we don't have any more information right now and that is the focus of ongoing investigations which are seeking to determine his full name as well. 'There had been problems between the two men that died. The man we believe to be British had shot a local man, causing his death. He was subsequently arrested by police.' The UK's Foreign Office is investigating reports the man hauled out of the police station and lynched was British, and is working with local authorities to confirm details of his murder. The Mirror has approached the Foreign Office for further information.
Daily Mirror
23-04-2025
- Daily Mirror
Agonising final moments of 'Brit' burned alive by mob of 200
Ecuadorian police said the man, believed to be British, was dragged out from one of their stations before he was burned alive by some 200 locals who were armed with guns Ecuadorian police have spoken for the first time about the horror revenge killing of a man believed to be British who was lynched by a baying mob. He was dragged out of a police station in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve in the South American country's Amazon region and burnt alive by around 200 locals armed with guns and makeshift weapons. The unnamed man had been arrested hours earlier on Sunday on suspicion of shooting dead a member of the local community. The shooting victim has been named as Rodrigo Chavez. A police chief covering Ecuador's Sucumbios province said overnight, in the first official reaction to the double killing: 'We are still trying to establish the specific identity of the citizen we believe is a British national. 'I say we're presuming he's English although we don't have documents that prove his nationality status. We're trying to confirm all the information including his migration status. 'We don't have any proven information relating to how long he had been in this community. We know that he was working and teaching English and was making reservations for tourists visiting the area but we don't have any more information right now and that is the focus of ongoing investigations which are seeking to determine his full name as well.' The police chief added: 'There had been problems between the two men that died. The man we believe to be British had shot a local man, causing his death. 'He was subsequently arrested by police.' Describing the mob that stormed the police station and threatened to harm officers as around 200-strong, he said: 'The locals acted after finding out the detainee was about to be transferred out of the area. 'They were carrying guns and other weapons including stones, sticks, spears and even cans of petrol they were threatening to burn the police station down with and harm officers. The police did everything humanly possible to safeguard the person who had been apprehended over the shooting. 'Unfortunately the size of the mob exceeded the capacities of the seven police officers who were at the scene.' The UK's Foreign Office is said to be following up on widespread reports the man hauled out of the police station and lynched was British, and working with local authorise to confirm details of his murder. He was killed around midday local time on Sunday, some six hours after he had been taken into police custody. The Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve is a popular eco-tourism area. It is the second largest reserve of Ecuador's 56 national parks and protected areas, and is located in the Putamayo Canton in Sucumbios Province.
Daily Mail
23-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Brit was burned alive in Ecuador after 'unstoppable' mob overpowered police and dragged the victim to his doom after he was accused of killing a local
A British man was lynched and burned alive in Ecuador after an unstoppable mob overpowered police officers and dragged him to his death. The Playas del Cuyabeno police claimed that the furious horde 'exceeded the capacity of seven officers' who were tasked with the responsibility of protecting the visitor who was believed to have moved from the UK and was killed in a revenge attack on Sunday. The unnamed man, who has not been officially identified, was being held in a police station in the Sucumbios province of Ecuador after being accused of shooting dead a local guide, named locally as Rodrigo Chavez. In horrifying scenes on April 20, more than 100 enraged villagers stormed the small-town police station on Sunday and dragged the man out into the street, setting him on fire in broad daylight. The police said: 'There had been problems between the two men that died. The man we believe to be British had shot a local man, causing his death. 'We know that he was working and teaching English and was making reservations for tourists visiting the area,' a police chief added. 'But we don't have any more information right now and that is the focus of ongoing investigations, which are seeking to determine his full name as well.' Local police confirmed he was arrested around 6am on Sunday morning following the murder accusations, as police attempted to provide him security and protection. The unnamed man, who has not been officially identified, was being held in a police station in the Sucumbios province of Ecuador after being accused of shooting dead a local guide, named locally as Rodrigo Chavez (pictured: crowds gathered at what is thought to be the scene of the shooting) But just hours later, the situation spiralled into chaos. With tensions boiling over, villagers gathered outside the police station before storming the building, dragging the suspect outside and setting him ablaze - just metres from the front door. Ecuadorian newspaper Extra reported officers who arrested him decided not to intervene when the baying mob forced their way into the police station ahead of his transfer out of the area. They stood back, the newspaper said, in order to avoid being attacked themselves and to avoid additional damage to state property. It said police reinforcements had taken time to reach the area because of its remoteness and difficult access. 'We are still trying to establish the specific identity of the citizen we believe is a British national,' the police explained. 'We're presuming he's English, although we don't have documents that prove his nationality status. We're trying to confirm all the information including his migration status. 'We don't have any proven information relating to how long he had been in this community.' The Foreign Office has said it is urgently working with local authorities to confirm the details and establish the man's identity. Local news outlets described the brutal killing as a 'shocking act of apparent community justice', and have claimed the act will likely be investigated as homicide or murder under Ecuador's penal code. The killing has shocked the region, which was placed under a state of emergency last year following a wave of violence, with 159 murders recorded - a staggering 70 per cent spike compared to the previous year. Playas del Cuyabeno, despite its isolation, has seen an influx of international tourists and volunteers due to its proximity to one of Ecuador's most treasured conservation areas. The Foreign Office warns against 'all but essential travel' to scenic areas around the Ecuador-Colombia border like the Sucumbios province 'due to the presence of organised crime linked to the production and trafficking of drugs'. Latin America has for decades been synonymous with the drug trade thanks to ruthless cartels and criminal gangs whose power and brutality cannot by tamed by the government or the armed forces. Some countries like Ecuador had managed to remain relatively peaceful for decades, despite bordering the notorious cocaine hotspots of Colombia and Peru. But the coastal nation has seen murder rates soar in recent years as drug lords and criminal masterminds dug their hooks into fresh territory and exploited its ports for maximum profit. The gruesome lynching came at the end of a Kichwa community event, according to local media. The Kichwa, Ecuador's largest indigenous group in the Amazon, number around 55,000 people and are protected under Article 171 of the national constitution, which grants them jurisdiction within their territories based on ancestral customs - as long as those customs do not violate national or international human rights law.
Times
22-04-2025
- Times
Mob that lynched Briton in Ecuador ‘too much for police to handle'
Ecuadorian police said 'everything humanly possible' was done to prevent a British man from being lynched and burnt alive by a village mob in the Amazon rainforest. The Playas del Cuyabeno police claimed that 'the mob exceeded the capacity of seven police officers' tasked with protecting the visitor, who was believed to have moved from the UK and was killed in a revenge attack on Sunday. The man, who has not been officially identified, was being held in a police station in the Sucumbios province of Ecuador on suspicion of shooting dead a man named locally as Rodrigo Chavez. After reports of the alleged shooting, more than 100 local residents were seen storming the station hours later on April 20, dragging the man into the street and setting him on fire. The police said: 'There had been problems between the two men that died. The man we believe to be British had shot a local man, causing his death.' 'We know that he was working and teaching English and was making reservations for tourists visiting the area,' a police chief added. 'But we don't have any more information right now and that is the focus of ongoing investigations, which are seeking to determine his full name as well.' Officers arrested the British man at about 6am and reportedly took him to the station for his own safety, according to local media. They were awaiting the arrival of specialist government units to take him to Lago Agrio, the capital of the northeast province of Sucumbios, which is about 120km (75 miles) away, when the mob entered. 'We are still trying to establish the specific identity of the citizen we believe is a British national,' the police explained. 'We're presuming he's English, although we don't have documents that prove his nationality status. We're trying to confirm all the information including his migration status. 'We don't have any proven information relating to how long he had been in this community.' Local news outlets described the killing as a 'shocking act of apparent community justice', and the group 'set him on fire until he died' in front of the police station. Sucumbios was declared as falling into a state of emergency by officials last year after 159 killings took place in the province — a 70 per cent increase from the previous year. The Foreign Office advised against all but essential travel to areas on the border between Ecuador and Colombia, due to 'the presence of organised crime linked to the production and trafficking of drugs'. However, Playas del Cuyabeno, which is only accessible by river and is at least a 50km (31 miles) boat ride from the nearest urban area, has become a popular eco-tourism destination along the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve — the second largest of Ecuador's 56 national parks and protected areas. The Foreign Office has said it is looking into the reports and working with local authorities to confirm details of the man's nationality. The death came at the end of a Kichwa community event. The Kichwa people are the largest indigenous group in the Ecuadorian Amazon region, with a population of about 55,000. Article 171 of the Ecuadorian constitution grants indigenous communities the authority to exercise jurisdictional powers within their territories, based on their ancestral traditions and laws, as long as they do not contradict national law or international human rights. However, local media said that the lynching and murder of a person 'constitutes a crime under the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code and can be investigated by the prosecutor's office as homicide or murder'.
Daily Mirror
22-04-2025
- Daily Mirror
Ecuador region where Brit 'lynched and burned alive' locked in spiralling gang war
The Sucumbios region, where a reportedly Brit man was lynched on Easter Sunday, has been engulfed in flashes of violence that have previously swallowed Brit tourists The region of the small nation where a man was lynched and burned alive by a gang of rioting locals is locked in a vicious spiralling gang war that has claimed hundreds of lives. The unnamed man, who local reports have identified as British, was arrested in the Amazonian Sucumbios province of Ecuador on suspicion of shooting dead a local named Rodrigo Chavez. But before he had the chance to stand trial, news of Mr Chavez's death spread within the community, and the alleged killer was pulled from the station by a furious group of more than 200 people. He was burned alive after the group overwhelmed police at the station in the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, a popular area tourists are warned against visiting due to its violent reputation. The stunning rainforest region, which borders Colombia, is infamous for being a haven for drug cartels, who have brutally flexed their influence over the last year, leaving a trail of mutilated bodies in their wake. Sucumbios authorities declared a state of emergency in the province last year following 159 killings, a surge of nearly 70 percent on the year previous. Police believe the violence is fuelled by struggles for territory between local armed groups, some of which are known for kidnapping and ransoming tourists. Brits have previously been targets of local gangs over the last more than a decade, with Kathryn Cox, 23, and Australian Fiona Wilde, 32, kidnapped in Cuyabeno in 2012. The two were rescued by a massive taskforce of more than 100 soldiers, police and park rangers after a farmer heard their screams during a robbery. Violence flared in Ecuador generally last year following the breakout of notorious gangster Adolfo Macías Villamar, known locally as "Fito", from the La Regional prison in the coastal city of Guayaquil. His escape and resulting upheaval in several prisons has led to a surge in violence in Guayaquil and neighbouring Esmeraldas that led Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa to declare a state of emergency and nationwide curfew that have since been renewed into 2025. But violence has only surged since then, with the proclimaion sparking immediate gangland backlash. A police officer aiding the gang crackdown was kidnapped on duty last year and forced to read a videotaped statement to the President warning him: "You declared war, you will get war". The statement added: "You declared a state of emergency. We declare police, civilians and soldiers to be the spoils of war." Brits have been warned against visiting the nation, which is sandwiched between two of the largest cocaine producing countries in the world - Colombia and Peru - advising against "all but essential travel".
