(RepublicanView.org) – The youngest mayor in Ecuador’s history was found shot to death in her car alongside an adviser on March 24.
Brigitte Garcia, 27, served as the mayor of San Vicente, a coastal town of about 10,000 residents. Jairo Loor, who served as the area’s communications director, was next to her in the vehicle. They were both found early in the morning after police were alerted to the incident.
Investigators collected evidence and later confirmed that the gunfire came from outside of the vehicle. They were inside of a rental that was being tracked with GPS. Officials have not announced any leads in the shooting and are still determining a motive.
Garcia was part of the Revolution Movement Party, the same party that former president Rafael Correa served under. Luisa Gonzalez, who has been campaigning recently as a presidential candidate with the party, called the incident an assassination. She also said that “nobody is safe in Ecuador, NOBODY” in a post on X.
Ecuador’s government recently declared a state of emergency as massive gang violence continues to grip the South American nation. That violence when Adolfo “Fito” Macias, leader of the “Los Choneros” gang, was busted out of prison. Several militant gang members overran the prison and took guards hostage during the escape. President Daniel Noboa extended the declaration by an additional 30 days in early March. Most of the gangs are heavily involved in drug trafficking.
It also came shortly after masked men with guns took over a television studio during a live broadcast while threatening to kill civilians. They were all arrested shortly after. The nation’s military has since taken over the streets and prisons. The government said the operation was successful but unfinished. According to their statistics, authorities have seized 65 tons of paraphernalia and killed just over a dozen terrorists. They have also arrested 12,000 people.
One of Garcia’s last social media posts detailed her efforts to bring clean water to her district. The post did not detail her plans.
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