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. <\/p>\n
The case has shocked the nation and sparked protests against the military, which has been spearheading President Daniel Noboa\u2019s crackdown on violent criminal groups. <\/p>\n
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. The bodies were found near to where the children were last seen. <\/p>\n
The children, Sa\u00fal Arboleda, Steven Medina, and brothers Josu\u00e9 and Ismael Arroyo, were reported missing on December 8 after playing soccer and being detained by soldiers in Guayas province. <\/p>\n
Video released last week by the National Assembly showed they had been coerced into getting into a patrol car against their will. <\/p>\n
The defense ministry acknowledged that the children, aged from 11 to 15, had been detained but insisted they were later released. It also claimed that the children had been involved in a robbery, but the Prosecutor\u2019s Office said there was no evidence to support that. <\/p>\n
News of the forensic identifications was received with frustration and heartbreak. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat pain to close the year with this tragedy that mourns the country. It is unacceptable that the lives of our children end in this way. Let fear not silence us, and let solidarity become the voice that demands justice so that something like this never happens again,\u201d the prefect of Guayas Marcela Agui\u00f1aga wrote on X. <\/p>\n
Guayaquil Mayor Aquiles \u00c1lvarez said, \u201cNothing will calm the pain of the parents, just as nothing will erase the mark of murderers from all those involved, directly or indirectly. The truth is that this country has hit rock bottom. Paradigms have been broken, but to make things worse. It makes you want nothing, everything hurts.\u201d <\/p>\n
During the hearing, the Prosecutor\u2019s Office had presented testimonies and video recordings that it said supported \u201cthe alleged participation of the defendants in the crime investigated.\u201d <\/p>\n
Outside the hearing, dozens of people, including the children\u2019s relatives and friends, gathered en masse to demand truth and transparency. <\/p>\n
Some carried photos of the children. Others held banners and shouted slogans such as, \u201cThey took them alive, we want them alive!\u201d and \u201cSir, madam, do not be indifferent, they take children in front of people!\u201d <\/p>\n
The National Assembly and the Mayor\u2019s Office of Quito have declared three days of mourning. <\/p>\n
Last week, President Noboa said there would be no impunity in this case and asked law enforcement institutions to work with the Attorney General\u2019s Office during the investigations. <\/p>\n
The defense ministry and armed forces said on Tuesday that they would collaborate \u201cwithout reservations or conditions\u201d in the investigations. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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