Los Lobos gang ‘taken down’ in Wednesday night police raids; Quito bull ring to be demolished; Electric buses to complement tram service; July 25 events

Sixty-five members of the Los Lobos criminal gang were arrested and millions of dollars of drugs, stolen goods and other property were seized in police raids Wednesday night and Thursday morning. The raids were carried out in Guayas, Manabí, Imbabura, Napo, Chimborazo, Tungurahua and Pichincha provinces.

“The intent of the operation was to take down Los Lobos by arresting its leaders and seizing its financial assets,” Interior Minister Jhon Reimberg said in a Thursday news conference. Although he provided no names, he said several of those arrested had outstanding arrest warrants in the U.S. and would be extradited.

Quito’s Plaza de Toros will be demolished to make way for a new real estate development.

One of the targets of the raids, Reimberg said, were two front companies that provided funding for gang activities. “These companies were seized and closed in the operation,” he said, adding that 27 “real estate assets” of gang members, valued at more than $10 million, were confiscated in Manabí and Santa Elena Provinces.

In his press conference, Reimberg said that one of the “top leaders” of Los Lobos is believed to be living overseas, probably in Turkey, sending orders back to Ecuador. He said that Wilmer Chavarría, alias Pipo, faked his death in a 2021 riot in Cuenca’s Turi Prison and then fled to Europe.

Quito bull ring to be demolished
Quito’s historic Plaza de Toros, once the site of the Jesús del Gran Poder bullfighting spectacle, has a date with the wrecking ball. The owners of the 16,000-seat arena say the facility has fallen into disrepair and will be demolished to make way for a new real estate development.

Opened in 1960, the plaza was considered the best bullring in South America in its heyday, attracting the top matadors from Spain and Latin America. The annual Jesús del Gran Poder celebration attracted tens of thousands and was considered the premier bullfighting festival in the region.

The owners of the plaza, Metropolitan Habitat and Housing Company, said attendance at bullfights began declining in the early 1990s and that the 2011 national referendum banning bullfighting was the coup de gras. The last Jesús del Gran Poder was held in 2012.

Electric buses to complement tram service
The Cuenca municipal transportation office said Thursday that funds have been allocated for the purchase of four electric buses that will shuttle passengers to tram stations at the north and south ends of the route. City officials said the purchase process has been initiated but did not say when the service would begin.

Tram director Haydee Lopez said the shuttle service is part of plans to integrate bus and tram service. He added that once the shuttle begins operation, new tram units will be put into service during peak hours to handle increased ridership.

July 25 Agenda
11:00 – Inauguración – Ingapirca – Exhibit of ‘Yurak: el sabio confidente de la gran serpiente’ (Yurak: the wise confidant of the great serpent <Her name didn’t happen to be Eve?>.
19:00 – Exposición – Casa Patrimonial Quinta Bolivar – Opening of exhibit: La Integridad en la Tormenta, a tribute to José Domingo de La Mar, first constitutional president of Perú who was born in Cuenca.
19:00 – Baile – Glorieta del Parque Calderón – Folk dances.
20:00 – Concierto – Glorieta del Parque Calderón – Presentation for the 20 years of music by Paúl Ramón y los Soneros.
20:00 – The Cuenca Symphony Orchestra and the Children’s Choir of the National Conservatory “José María Rodríguez” present “Los Coristas”, Todos Santos Church; Admission $5
21:00 – Música – Plaza central, Santa Ana Parish – Presentation by Sonora Dinamita.