A leader of Ecuador’s Los Lobos crime group was arrested at Mexico City’s international airport, authorities said on Wednesday, in what regional officials called a significant blow to criminal networks spanning Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador.

Ecuador’s Interior Minister John Reimberg identified the man as Angel Esteban Aguilar, who is wanted in connection with the 2023 assassination of Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, a vocal critic of corruption and organized crime.

The suspect, known by the alias “Lobo Menor,” was the subject of an Interpol red notice and is linked to drug trafficking, extortion and homicide, Mexican Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said in a post on X.

Mexican authorities said they tracked him in real-time upon his arrival in the country, where he attempted to use a fake Colombian identity under the name Juan Carlos Montero. Reimberg said he had planned to flee to Mexico.

Trilateral Efforts

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said the arrest followed a manhunt in Colombia and was a result of trilateral cooperation between Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador.

“This result represents a significant blow against transnational organized crime and confirms the effectiveness of trilateral cooperation between Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico in the fight against multi-crime networks,” Petro said, adding that the arrest was made for extradition purposes.

Mexican authorities said they were communicating with the Colombian government over legal and immigration requirements.

Petro described the suspect as one of Ecuador’s most wanted criminals, with links to Mexican cartels and the leader of the largest dissident branch of the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), known by the alias Ivan Mordisco.

Washington designated Los Lobos a foreign terrorist organization in September last year.

The case unfolds against a backdrop of regional tensions over drug trafficking, with Ecuador imposing hefty tariffs on Colombian goods, accusing it of not doing enough to stop drug trafficking around their shared border.

Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump gathered a raft of right-wing-aligned Latin American presidents to a summit in Florida known as “Shield of the Americas” where leaders agreed to prioritize military tactics against organized crime.

The leaders of Mexico and Colombia were absent from the summit.

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(Reporting by Lizbeth Diaz, Writing by Natalia Siniawski; Editing by Sarah Morland and Howard Goller)

By&nbspAnka Kir

Published on
18/03/2026 – 23:25 GMT+1

The Russian gas carrier Arctic Metagaz, damaged by a series of explosions, has been drifting uncontrollably in the Mediterranean Sea for nearly two weeks, causing growing alarm among coastal states and environmental activists.

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Moscow claims that the vessel, which belongs to an authorised “shadow fleet”, was attacked by Ukrainian maritime drones. Kiev has not commented on these claims.

Aerial photos taken after the attack show a giant breach several dozen metres wide near the waterline. The scale of the destruction was so great that Libyan authorities mistakenly declared the ship a wreck on 4 March.

Hull damage and crew evacuation

The huge 277-metre tanker, its hull blackened by fire, lost control after explosions on 3 March, when 30 crew members – mostly Russian and Filipino nationals – were forced to abandon ship.

According to Russian reports, pops continue to be heard on board, gas emissions have been recorded, roll has increased, and localised fires have broken out in some compartments. At the time of the crew evacuation, 450 tonnes of fuel oil, 250 tonnes of diesel fuel and significant volumes of natural gas remained in the tanks, which significantly increases the risk of an emergency development up to explosion.

Environmental risks and Europe’s response

AFP footage taken on Sunday shows the vessel about 50 nautical miles southwest of Malta, with the tanker’s stern and sides visibly blackened by the fire.

Environmentalists have labelled the Arctic Metagaz a “floating time bomb” and warned that a leak or explosion could cause long-term damage to one of the Mediterranean’s most biodiversity-rich areas. Experts note that the damaged hull and ongoing internal processes make the situation unpredictable.

Leading environmental NGO WWF emphasised that possible contamination may have consequences for years to come.

European governments are also concerned about the situation: Italy, France and seven other EU countries have sent a joint appeal to the European Commission, warning of an “immediate and serious danger” to the region.

Legal uncertainty

The vessel is drifting between Malta and the Italian islands of Lampedusa and Linosa while remaining in international waters, complicating the question of who should take responsibility for intervening.

Rescue teams are already in Malta, ready for possible intervention if the ship approaches the country’s territorial waters. However, the question of who exactly should act remains a matter of diplomatic dispute.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow controls the situation as a flag state, but emphasised that international norms place responsibility for preventing environmental damage on coastal states.

While it is being discussed who exactly should take decisive action, the Arctic Metagaz continues its uncontrolled drift and the risk of a serious environmental incident remains high.