With the help of the Packbot510 robot and the canine Siko, the National Police of Ecuador managed to deactivate 20 explosive blocks attached to a gas tank in an abandoned car at a gas station in Quitumbe, a popular sector of Quito.
“With our Intervention and Rescue Group technicians, 20 high-powered explosive blocks attached to a gas cylinder were deactivated inside a vehicle parked at a gas station south of Quito,” the police force confirmed on Twitter.
Con nuestros técnicos del #GIR, se desactivó 20 tacos explosivos de alto poder, que se encontraban junto a un cilindro de gas, al interior de un vehículo estacionado en una gasolinera al sur de #UIO.
No se registró daños materiales ni personas heridas.#CruzadaPorLaSeguridad pic.twitter.com/I8Yt7jhFu8
Policía Ecuador (@PoliciaEcuador) April 7, 2023
They specified that no material damages or injured people were registered and that inquiries were being carried out to find those involved.
Meanwhile, in Guayaquil (southwest), a car bomb exploded in Isla Trinitaria behind a gas station, although it is unknown if there were victims.
It was reported that three violent deaths occurred in the same sector on April 6.
Ecuador is experiencing a wave of violence that in 2022 left more than 4,500 deaths nationwide and, according to estimates, could exceed that.
The government attributes the situation to territorial disputes between criminal groups for drug trafficking operations.
With information from Sputnik
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