Overview
- Police discovered eight bodies buried in two graves inside an unregistered gold mine in Pucará, Azuay, after relatives reported missing miners, with officials saying the remains were found on Sunday.
- Authorities reported the victims included seven men and one woman and estimated they had died about 48 hours before recovery.
- Coronel Pablo Inga said preliminary examinations found no gunshot wounds and that injuries were consistent with machete-inflicted dismemberment and decapitation.
- Investigators secured the difficult-to-access site, found two burned vehicles nearby, moved the bodies to the forensic center in Cuenca for autopsies and are working to identify the victims and determine a motive.
- The case highlights growing illegal gold and copper extraction in Azuay and the influence of organised groups such as Los Lobos, which could complicate prosecutions and shape local security operations under the national state of exception.