• 2 years ago

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Transcript
00:00 In the moments after the shooting, confusion and panic filled the air.
00:05 This is where Fernando Villavicencio was shot dead after leaving a presidential campaign
00:10 rally in the Ecuadorian capital.
00:13 Authorities say the suspected attacker died of gunshot injuries, while nine other people
00:18 were hurt.
00:19 Shortly before his death, Villavicencio had vowed to tackle corruption and organised crime.
00:25 "Either the gangsters triumph and return, or the good people, the democrats, the brave
00:36 people win the battle and get their homeland back."
00:42 Prior to the shooting, the 59-year-old centrist said he had received multiple death threats,
00:47 including from leaders of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel.
00:52 Violence in Ecuador has surged in the past year, fuelled by the growing presence of drug
00:56 traffickers.
00:57 Villavicencio's death follows those of a mayor and a parliamentary candidate earlier
01:02 this year.
01:03 Reacting to the attack on social media, Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso suggested organised
01:09 crime was to blame.
01:11 "Outraged and shocked by the assassination of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio,
01:17 for his memory and for his struggle, I assure you that this crime will not go unpunished.
01:23 Organised crime has gone too far, but the full weight of the law will fall on them."
01:29 Villavicencio was one of eight candidates in the first round of the August 20 vote,
01:33 although not the front-runner.
01:35 A former journalist and unionist, he was a critical voice against corruption.
01:40 Villavicencio's killing was met without cry by other candidates demanding action, with
01:45 one of them suspending his campaign.

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