A shootout in a night club in Ecuador killed eight people and injured three more, the police said.
The authorities were called to the Santa Lucía property in the early morning hours of Sunday morning, where they already found seven people after armed men opened the fire. A eighth person died in the hospital.
The police said the motive for the shootout was unclear.
Santa Lucía is a small town in the Guayas coastal province, one of four provinces that are currently under a state of emergency to contain the violence of gangs.
Among the dead was the owner of the night club, who, according to the AFP news agency and the local media, was Mayor Ubaldo Urquizo.
The local government’s Facebook page provided the mayor of condolences after the death of his brother and wrote: “We follow with respect and solidarity with their grief and raise our prayers so that they find strength and consolation in this difficult time.”
The shootout is the latest in a flood of violent attacks in Guayas. Nine People were shot in a pool hall on July 19 and another 17 were killed in a bar on July 27th.
The President of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, declared war against gang crimes in January 2024, but violence continued despite the increasing military presence.
Official figures say that 4,051 murders were recorded between January and May 2025.
The country sees how 70 percent of all cocaine produced in the world gets through its ports through the government’s information.
