Five severed heads found hanging on Ecuador beach amid escalating gang clashes

Crime

Five severed heads found hanging on Ecuador beach amid escalating gang clashes

Bloody display in Manabi province linked to conflict between criminal groups competing for trafficking routes

Emma Bussey Fox News

Published

January 11, 2026 10:45pm EST

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Five severed human heads were found hanging from ropes on a beach in southwestern Ecuador Sunday in a gruesome display linked to ongoing gang violence sweeping across the country, according to reports.

The killings came amid a wave of bloody violence tied to drug trafficking and organized crime, which has surged across Ecuador in recent years.

The Associated Press reported that the grim discovery underscores the tactics used by criminal groups competing for control of territory and trafficking routes, especially along the country’s coastline.

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Drug trafficking gangs leave five human heads on Ecuador beach with a threatening message to fishermen, police said, as violence surges along the country's coastal trafficking routes. (Kike Calvo/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Police said the heads were found on a tourist beach in the small fishing port of Puerto Lopez, in Manabi province.

The images shared by Ecuadorian media and on social media showed the severed heads tied with ropes to wooden poles planted in the sand, with blood visible at the scene.

A wooden sign left beside the heads carried a threatening message aimed at alleged extortionists targeting local fishermen.

The message warned those demanding so-called "vaccine cards" protection payments commonly extorted by gangs that they had been identified, the report said.

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Members of the Marines detain a suspect during security operations in southern Guayaquil, Ecuador on October 19, 2021. - Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso on October 19 declared a state of emergency in the country grappling with a surge in drug-related violence. (AFP via Getty Images)

Authorities said the display was likely the result of a conflict between criminal groups operating in the area.

Drug-trafficking networks with links to transnational cartels are active along Ecuador’s coast and have used fishermen and their small boats to transport illicit shipments, according to local police.

President Daniel Noboa launched an armed campaign against gangs and declared states of emergency in several provinces, including Manabi, deploying the military to support police operations.

Despite his efforts, violence has continued to escalate with police increasing patrols and surveillance in Puerto Lopez following recent massacres in the province, the Associated Press said.

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In 2025, at least nine people, including a baby, were killed there in an attack that authorities blamed on clashes between local gangs also.

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As previously reported by Fox News Digital, in 2025, infighting between factions of a gang vying for control over territory in Ecuador's largest city, Guayaquil, left nearly two dozen people dead.

Ecuador ended the year with a record homicide rate of 52 per 100,000 people, according to the Organized Crime Observatory, making it the deadliest year on record.

Emma Bussey is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Before joining Fox, she worked at The Telegraph with the U.S. overnight team, across desks including foreign, politics, news, sport and culture.

Five severed heads found hanging on Ecuador beach amid escalating gang clashes