British Honorary Consul kidnapped in Ecuador
Kyiv • UNN
British Honorary Consul in Ecuador Colin Armstrong was kidnapped from his farm by unknown assailants amid escalating drug cartel violence.
In Ecuador, in the city of Los Rios in the southwest of the country, the honorary British Honorary Consul Colin Armstrong was kidnapped by unknown persons. This was reported by the agency Reuters, reports UNN.
Details
It is noted that the diplomat, who is also a farmer, was abducted early in the morning from his farm. Neither the British Embassy nor the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry have not yet commented.
Context
In recent years, Ecuador has become a center of operations for foreign and and local drug cartels, which have been implementing a regime of terror with assassinations kidnappings and extortion. Ultra-violent gangs control the prisons and and the streets of many cities and ports, where violence has increased dramatically.
Since 2018, the homicide rate in the country has quadrupled - from 6 to 26 per 100,000 inhabitants. Located between Colombia and Peru, the world's largest cocaine producers, Ecuador the world's largest cocaine producers, Ecuador seized a record 210 tons of drugs on its territory in 2021. a record 210 tons of drugs in 2021.
READ MORE: FBI agents join investigation into the murder of Ecuadorian presidential candidate
