Ecuadorian mayor assassinated in coastal city used for drug cartel shipments

The mayor of the Ecuadorian port city of Manta was assassinated on Sunday during an attack that killed one other person and wounded four others, officials said. 

Agustin Intriago, 38, was making a neighborhood visit to inspect public works in the city of Manta, about 160 miles (260 kilometers) from the capital of Quito, when he was attacked. 

Intriago was shot by several bullets by his attackers, local police commander Alex Salgado told reporters. A woman, described as a “collateral victim” also died in the attack.

Four other individuals were wounded. Two of those wounded are suspected of having taken part in the attack, according to Interior Minister Juan Zapata. They are receiving medical attention under police surveillance. 

Intriago, who belonged to the movement Better City, has recently been re-elected in February and began his new term in May. 

The motive for the attack was not immediately disclosed. 

Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso posted on Twitter that he regretted Intriago’s assassination. He added that he had instructed the police to find those behind the attack. Multiple specialized units were deployed to the scene to continue the investigation. 

“I can’t believe this has happened,” former President Rafael Correa wrote on Twitter.

Manta, a city of around 200,000 people located along the country’s Pacific coast, is commonly used by drug cartels to move shipments of drugs from South America to other places, including North America and Europe. 

A similar attack took place in May when several gunmen targeted the mayor of the city of Duran. While the mayor survived the attack, one other individual was killed and several others were wounded, according to local media.