US asks Ecuador to extradite criminal leader "Fito"

Ecuador's National Court of Justice announced that the United States has requested the extradition of drug trafficker José Adolfo Macías Villamar, better known as "Fito," leader of Los Choneros, Ecuador's largest criminal group.

"The United States has submitted to the President of the National Court of Justice, José Suing Nagua, a formal request for the extradition of José Adolfo MV, who is wanted by the United States justice system," the court announced.

In a message published on the social network X on Tuesday, the court added that the case will be handled “in accordance with the Ecuadorian legal system”.

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About the extradition process of José Adolfo M., the @CorteNacional de Justicia informs the country. ⬇️

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— Corte Nacional de Justicia (@CorteNacional) July 9, 2025

The agency did not specify a date for the extradition, but Ecuadorian Interior Minister John Reimberg said he was confident "Fito" would arrive in the United States later this year.

On Tuesday, the minister highlighted, also on the social network X, that the extradition request is happening “thanks to a legal framework that allows it and the good relationship between this government and the United States.”

“What we offer, we deliver. Organized crime no longer has allies or hiding places. We will finish what we started and even say: good riddance, ‘Fito’ ,” Reimberg added.

Also on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised Ecuador for capturing “Fito” in conversation with Ecuadorian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility Gabriela Sommerfeld.

The statement was made by State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce in a statement released by the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador.

The Secretary of State also highlighted the partnership between the countries “to promote security throughout our hemisphere”.

Rubio and Sommerfeld also discussed “shared efforts to curb mass illegal immigration and combat transnational crime” in the region.

“Fito” returned to the maximum security prison La Roca at the end of June after being captured, almost a year and a half after he escaped from prison.

The leader of Los Choneros was sentenced in 2011 to 34 years in prison for several crimes, including drug trafficking, homicide and organized crime.

In April, the U.S. government formally charged “Fito,” including with conspiracy to distribute cocaine internationally, use of firearms, and smuggling firearms from the U.S.

According to the indictment, Los Choneros and the Mexican Sinaloa cartel controlled major cocaine trafficking routes through Ecuador and operated a large-scale network “responsible for shipping and distributing tons of cocaine from South America, through Central America and Mexico, to the United States and elsewhere.”

The Los Choneros group was also sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury, which froze accounts and properties linked to the group or to "Fito" himself.