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6d ago

Ecuador Extradites Notorious Gang Boss 'Fito' to U.S.

The handover under a referendum-backed law underscores Quito’s push to hold transnational cocaine networks to account.

This photo provided by Ecuador Prison Authorities on Sunday, July 20, 2025, shows Jose Adolfo Macias, better known as “Fito,” being handed over to US officials in Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Security forces stand outside the National Court of Justice following a hearing for the extradition of Ecuadorean gang leader Jose Adolfo Macias, known as "Fito," who on Friday accepted the court's request to be extradited to the United States to face drug and gun charges, in Quito, Ecuador, July 11, 2025. REUTERS/Karen Toro/File Photo
Drug trafficker Adolfo Macias (C), alias Fito, was taken to an air base in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on June 25, 2025, after his recapture in Manta, Manabi Province
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Overview

  • On July 20, Ecuador’s prison authority handed Macías over to U.S. custody after he consented in a Quito court to extradition under a law passed by referendum to curb gang violence.
  • He faces U.S. indictments filed in April for cocaine distribution, conspiracy and firearms smuggling brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
  • Macías escaped a maximum-security penitentiary in January 2024 and was found in a hidden bunker beneath floor tiles in a Manta luxury home on June 25.
  • He is the first Ecuadoran to be extradited under last year’s referendum-approved measures expanding the government’s power to transfer suspects abroad.
  • His Los Choneros network maintains ties with Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, Colombia’s Gulf Clan and Balkan mafias, according to the Ecuadorian Organized Crime Observatory.