Five human heads found hanging on Ecuador beach amid ongoing gang violence
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Five severed human heads were found hanging on ropes on a beach in southwestern Ecuador on Sunday, according to reports, in a horrific display linked to ongoing gang violence across the country.
The killings came amid a wave of bloody violence linked to drug trafficking and organized crime that has increased in Ecuador in recent years.
Associated Press The grim discovery highlights the tactics used by criminal groups competing for control of territory and smuggling routes, particularly along the country’s coastline.
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Drug smuggling gangs left five human heads on the Ecuadorian coast with a threatening message to fishermen, police said, as violence increased along the country’s coastal smuggling routes. (Kike Calvo/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Police said the heads were found on a tourist beach in the small fishing port of Puerto Lopez in Manabi province.
In the images shared by Ecuadorian media and social media, severed heads tied with ropes to wooden poles planted in the sand and blood at the scene were seen.
A wooden sign left next to the heads bore a threatening message targeting extortionists targeting local fishermen.
The message warned those requesting protection payments for so-called “vaccine cards,” which are often extorted by gangs, that they had been identified, the report said.
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Members of the Marine Corps detain a suspect during security operations in Guayaquil, southern Ecuador, on Oct. 19, 2021. – Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency on October 19 in the country struggling with an increase in drug-related violence. (AFP via Getty Images)
Authorities said the demonstration was likely the result of a conflict between criminal groups operating in the area.
Drug trafficking networks with ties to international cartels operate off the Ecuadorian coast and use fishermen and their small boats to transport illicit shipments, according to local police.
President Daniel Noboa launched an armed campaign against the gangs and declared a state of emergency in several provinces, including Manabi, deploying the army to support police operations.
Despite their efforts, violence continues to escalate in Puerto Lopez as police increase patrols and surveillance following recent massacres in the state, the Associated Press said.
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Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa addresses his supporters at his family home in Olon, Ecuador, on Sunday, April 13, 2025, after early results showed him leading the presidential election second round. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
In 2025, at least nine people, including a baby, died in the attack, which authorities blamed on clashes between local gangs.
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Feuds between them in 2025, as previously reported by Fox News Digital factions of a gang Nearly two dozen people have died in the race for control of territory in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city.
Ecuador ended the year with a record murder rate of 52 per 100,000 people, making it the deadliest year on record, according to the Organized Crime Observatory.
