Ecuadorian gang leader Carlos Suástegui killed in Guayaquil airport shooting

On June 17, 2026, Carlos Alberto Suástegui Villanueva, identified as the leader of Los Águilas – the armed wing of the Los Choneros cartel – was shot dead outside the arrivals hall of José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Two teenagers, aged 15 and 16, waited near the terminal with a plush toy and a bouquet of flowers, approached the victim and opened fire. Both were apprehended at the scene and two firearms were seized.

Interior Minister John Reimberg confirmed the killing and said it occurred one day after President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency in ten provinces. The incident highlights Ecuador’s deepening security crisis; the national homicide rate has risen to 51 per 100,000, the highest in South America.

Suástegui’s body was taken to a medical center in El Triunfo for autopsy before being released to his family. The teenage suspects have been placed in preventive detention and, under Ecuadorian juvenile law, could receive up to eight years of socio‑educational internment.

The airport briefly suspended flights and police presence was increased while authorities launch a broader investigation into the organizers of the attack.