In Ecuador, prosecutor Marcelo Vasconez and his police escort were killed by armed attackers outside his office in the coastal city of Manta. Vasconez was part of the attorney general’s unit focused on transnational organized crime, and his death adds to a troubling trend, marking at least the ninth prosecutor killed since 2019. Ecuador has faced increasing violence from powerful criminal groups, prompting President Daniel Noboa to intensify anti-crime efforts through heightened enforcement, new crime-fighting measures, and emergency decrees.