US sanctions Ecuadorian drug trafficking group Los Lobos

The Ecuadorian government declared a state of emergency in nearly a third of its provinces last month after a surge in violence, authorizing the deployment of soldiers on the streets for a period of 60 days.

“With thousands of members, Los Lobos has become Ecuador’s largest drug trafficking organization and is a significant contributor to the violence plaguing the country,” the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement.

The group, whose name means “the wolves” in Spanish, “is involved in drug trafficking, murder-for-hire and illegal gold mining”, and has also been accused of the assassination in 2023 of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, the Treasury Department added.

He also unveiled sanctions against Los Lobos leader Wilmer Geovanny Chavarria Barre – also known as “Pipo” – who he said gained notoriety leading a group of hitmen for another gang . He remains at large.

“As today's actions demonstrate, we strongly support Ecuador in its efforts to combat drug trafficking and counter the threat of drug-related violence,” said Treasury Undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, Brian Nelson, in a press release.

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