Government changes its story and admits four Guayaquil boys were apprehended by the military

Only hours after denying it, the government admitted Monday that military personnel were responsible for the disappearance of four Guayaquil boys December 8. In a news conference, Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo confirmed the boys were apprehended by a military patrol in an area where a robbery allegedly occurred and were taken to an Air Force in Taura, 30 kilometers north of Guayaquil.

Protesters gathered outside the government building on Parque Calderon in Cuenca Monday to demand the return of four missing Guayaquil boys.

He said that boys were released in a rural area near the base later in the day but offered no explanation of why they remain missing 15 days later.

“Standard arrest protocol was violated, and the minors should have been turned over to the National Police after they were apprehended,” Loffredo said. “The armed forces are not allowed to take suspects into custody.” He added that a military tribunal has been designated to investigate the case and punish those involved.

On Monday afternoon, investigators from the Attorney General’s office conducted a search of the Taura base in the area where the boys were held. Agents seized 16 mobile phones, logbooks, computers and two vehicles. Prosecutors in charge of the investigation said the case is being handled by the Specialized Unit for the Investigation of the Illegitimate Use of Force.

According to Loffredo, the boys were detained by the troops in the area where an alleged robbery occurred, near Mall del Sol in Guayaquil. The alleged victim refused to press charges. “The minors were then transported inappropriately to the base at Taura, where they were held for several hours,” Loffredo said.

Parents of the four boys, aged 12 to 15, said they knew the military was involved from the beginning. “We have the video proof that they were taken by the military and that they were brutalized by military personnel,” the mother of one of the boys said. She claimed the four were never near the alleged robbery scene and were apprehended near a soccer field near their homes.

One of the boys made a cell phone call to his father from the air force base, saying he and the others were stripped naked and beaten.

The parents are denying social media reports that two or three of the boys was involved in a criminal gang. “These were good students and football players, they were not gang members,” the mother said.

Protests were held in Guayaquil, Cuenca and Quito Monday demanding the return of the boys.