Commander of Ecuador's Air Force assassinated

Published at: 14/02/2025 07:24 PM

The commander of the Special Operations Group of the Ecuadorian Air Force (FAE), Porfirio Javier Cedeño, was killed this Friday in an armed attack on the road to Daule, near the Litoral Penitentiary, in the coastal city of Guayaquil (southwest), local press reported.

The assassinated military commander was part of the security team of former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa (2007-2017).

Ecuadorian media reported that the attack occurred after 07:30 local time (12:30 GMT) when Cedeño was traveling in a vehicle to the city of Manta, in the western province of Manabí, to attend a military ceremony.

The Armed Forces and the Ecuadorian Army have expressed through their social networks their deep regret over the death of Cedeño, who had a military career of more than 20 years. With the rank of lieutenant colonel, Cedeño had served as commander of the FAE Special Operations Group since May 2023, in addition to having been rector of the FAE 3 Armed Forces Educational Unit, in the rural town of Taura.

The murder also joins the wave of attacks against politicians, mayors, prosecutors and prison officials by organized crime, to which the Government attributes the escalation of criminal violence plaguing Ecuador.

Since January 9, 2024, the South American country has been fighting an “internal armed conflict” declared by the current president Daniel Noboa against 22 transnational organized crime groups identified as “terrorists” and “belligerent non-state actors”. Under this measure, soldiers and police officers were mobilized throughout the country to neutralize these gangs and guarantee territorial integrity, without being able to contain them until now.

Mazo News Team