They arrest the alleged perpetrator of the massacre in the port of Esmeraldas

The police arrested the person who allegedly planned and coordinated the massacre of nine people in mid-April in an artisanal port in the Ecuadorian city of Esmeraldas, in the north of the country and on the shores of the Pacific Ocean.

On its Twitter account, that force published on Wednesday that the arrest occurred after operations and raids in the province of the same name in which six other people were also arrested and two rifles were confiscated, among other items. The identity of the detainee was not indicated and no other details were given.

The massacre occurred on April 11 when some 30 people arrived by sea and land at the artisanal port with rifles and pistols and opened fire indiscriminately against the occupants of one of the warehouses, unleashing chaos and panic among the fishermen and merchants of the area.

The authorities later explained that the incident occurred due to a dispute between two gangs of extortionists seeking control of these facilities. Since then, the police and military presence has increased notably in that province, where even the schools receive protection from the uniformed officers.

According to statistics from the Esmeraldas mayor’s office, so far this year there have been nearly 420 deaths in the province, a rate of 63 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.

The province of Esmeraldas is on the border with Colombia, where important shipments of cocaine come from that are exported from Ecuadorian ports, which is why both sea and land routes have become disputed areas between rival gangs, according to the government.

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