In a chilling and brazen attack, suspected hitmen in Ecuador assassinated 39-year-old Carlos Alberto Suastegui Villanueva outside the arrivals hall of José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil. Authorities identify him as a senior figure in Los Aguilas, a criminal group designated by the Ecuadorian government as a terrorist organization.
A deadly ruse at the airport
Security footage shows the assailants waiting near the international arrivals area, posing as relatives or friends greeting an incoming passenger. To avoid suspicion, they held stuffed toys and flowers — including a small teddy bear behind which one gunman concealed a firearm.
As Suastegui Villanueva appeared, one suspect drew the weapon from behind the toy and shot him at close range. A second attacker then approached and delivered a fatal shot.
Aftermath and investigation
The attack left one man seriously injured after he was caught near the victim during the shooting. Ecuadorian authorities swiftly arrested two teenagers — aged 16 and 15 — in the airport parking lot. Investigators also recovered the firearms used in the killing.
According to initial reports, the motive appears tied to internal gang conflict — specifically, a violent power struggle between rival criminal groups vying for control over key territories.
Los Aguilas and Ecuador’s security crisis
Los Aguilas is believed to be deeply involved in drug trafficking and extortion. Ecuador’s geographic position — wedged between Colombia and Peru, the world’s top cocaine-producing nations — makes it a critical transit hub for narcotics bound for the United States and Europe. In recent years, escalating gang violence has severely strained the country’s security infrastructure and public safety.