The arrest of Wilmer Chavarría, alias"Pipo," in Spain after arriving from Morocco, brought an end to a long international manhunt. Identified as the leader of Los Lobos, the most powerful criminal gang in Ecuador, Chavarría is considered by authorities to be the strategist behind attacks aimed at pressuring the government of President Daniel Noboa and obstructing its security policies.
The investigation determined that Los Lobos not only coordinated criminal activities in Ecuadorian territory, but also planned threats against the Ecuadorian president from abroad.
According to the police file, the gang used resources, communications, and logistics based in Spain and the United Arab Emirates. Chavarría allegedly operated under the false identity of Danilo Ramón Fernández Calderón, alternating residence between Europe and the Middle East after faking his death in 2021.
The structure led by “Pipo” allocated funds from abroad to finance attacks, many of which were carried out using car bombs and drones controlled from detention centers in Guayaquil.
The pattern of attacks sought to intimidate officials and hinder prison and security reforms promoted during the current government.
According to official data, “the organization expanded its capacity internationally and developed alliances with criminal networks in Mexico, Colombia and various European countries.”
Following the recapture in May of José Adolfo Macías Villamar, alias ‘Fito’, leader of Los Choneros, Chavarría assumed de facto criminal leadership in Ecuador, consolidating Los Lobos' control over key areas of drug trafficking and illegal mining.
Various sources attribute to Chavarría the coordination of drug routes from Colombia, with distribution in Europe, through agreements with the Jalisco New Generation cartel and other organizations.
The arrest was made possible by a joint operation that facilitated the tracking of the movements of the kingpin, who used multiple nationalities and methods of concealment, including cosmetic procedures to alter his appearance.
Ecuador's Interior Minister, John Reimberg, detailed that"Chavarría is responsible for at least 400 deaths and tried to evade justice with false documents and identity changes."
Los Lobos led an offensive against Los Choneros in recent years, the former allied with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the latter linked to the Sinaloa Cartel. This dispute led to an increase in violence in Ecuador, with hundreds of homicides and attacks, in an escalation that positioned the country as a key location on global routes for cocaine and illegally mined gold trafficking.
The Chavarría case also exposed how Ecuadorian criminal organizations incorporate transnational crime models, digitization of operations, and tactical alliances outside their country of origin.
The leader of Los Lobos had made Spain a command center, which complicated efforts by Ecuadorian and European security forces to locate him. The investigation indicates that he maintained close ties with criminal networks in the Netherlands, Italy, and Germany.
The arrest of “Pipo” coincides with political pressure exerted by social sectors in Ecuador to strengthen the fight against organized crime and reform the prison system.
Authorities emphasized that international cooperation was crucial in capturing and prosecuting ringleaders who sought refuge abroad.
Chavarria's downfall redefines the map of organized crime in Latin America and introduces new challenges for the region's police alliances against organizations that operate beyond national borders.
