Ecuador orders detention of 16 air force members over disappearance of 4 children

CNN — A judge in Ecuador has ordered the detention of 16 air force members accused of involvement in the disappearance of four children, whose charred remains were discovered weeks after they were seen being forced into a military patrol car against their will. On Tuesday, moments after a judge in Guayaquil ordered the detentions, prosecutors announced that forensic tests showed four charred corpses found last week belonged to the children. Let fear not silence us, and let solidarity become the voice that demands justice so that something like this never happens again,” the prefect of Guayas Marcela Aguiñaga wrote on X. Guayaquil Mayor Aquiles Álvarez said, “Nothing will calm the pain of the parents, just as nothing will erase the mark of murderers from all those involved, directly or indirectly. It makes you want nothing, everything hurts.” During the hearing, the Prosecutor’s Office had presented testimonies and video recordings that it said supported “the alleged participation of the defendants in the crime investigated.” Outside the hearing, dozens of people, including the children’s relatives and friends, gathered en masse to demand truth and transparency.