Interior Minister Juan Zapata

Quito, Jun 28 (RHC) Interior Minister Juan Zapata said that Ecuador’s National Police is much stronger as the country has reported an alarming increase in violent deaths, kidnappings, and extortion.

Zapata pointed out that the change in the police’s actions supported new laws, such as the legitimate use of force, which has dismantled 776 groups and 72 bands dedicated to extortion.

This week, Security Secretary Wagner Bravo noted the alarming increase in violent deaths and assured that several measures, such as the graduation of more police officers, are being taken to face this problem.

Last week, the InSight Crime Foundation stated that Ecuador is the second most violent country in South America in terms of the homicide rate, only behind Venezuela, which recorded a 40-percent rate by late 2022. (Source: PL)