Jorge Glas, the former Vice President of Ecuador, was swiftly evacuated from La Roca maximum security prison in response to disturbances within the facility. These incidents reportedly involved prisoners mutinying and setting fire to mattresses and newspapers, with some allegations suggesting the act was meant as an assassination attempt on Glas. Following these events, the Ecuadorian National Service of Integral Attention to Adults Deprived of their Liberty and Adolescent Offenders (SNAI) has confirmed that Glas has been safely reintroduced into custody following standard procedures. For more detailed information, you can visit the article on JURIST.
Jorge Glas’s lawyer, Sonia Gabriela Vera García, has criticized the state’s response, describing it as perilous, harmful, and tantamount to a slow death sentence. Vera García further emphasized that should anything adverse happen to Glas, the state must bear responsibility. She also appealed to international organizations to intervene. This situation unfolds amid comments from government officials who dismissed the prison disturbances as a maneuver to disrupt national peace and order. SNAI underscored that Glas’s extraction was executed to preserve his safety and well-being.
Glas, who was initially taken into custody in April 2024 at the Mexican embassy in Ecuador, has been a controversial figure. His arrest has faced scrutiny, with concerns cast over its legality. Still, the National Court of Justice upheld his detention. Glas was convicted in 2017 for bribery and corruption relating to the Odebrecht scandal. The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has also called on Ecuador to investigate reports of mistreatment against Glas, as outlined in a previous report.
These developments occur during a period of considerable political instability in Ecuador, with presidential elections anticipated in February 2025.