Family of former Ecuadorian minister reports no contact after his deportation from the United States

José Serrano’s family says the former Ecuadorian minister has spent seven days without contact with relatives or lawyers since entering the country’s maximum-security prison after his deportation from the United States.

“José Serrano Salgado, 168 hours incommunicado, seven days without contact with his family or lawyers. We do not know whether he is receiving the medicines he needs. We cannot directly confirm that he is alive,” his daughter Verónica wrote on X.

She posted a video showing Serrano’s mother, Rocío Salgado, outside the Cárcel del Encuentro with his lawyer, Eduardo León. They went to the prison to deliver medication that Salgado said her son must take. León said no one accepted the medicine, and that prison officials had not responded to his requests to speak with Serrano.

The family’s complaint resembles allegations from relatives of other prisoners at the facility. On Aug. 24, those families filed a legal protection action demanding visits and communication channels. A hearing was expected on Tuesday.

Serrano, a prominent figure in former President Rafael Correa’s government, lived in the United States from 2021 until his deportation on Aug. 28. Ecuadorian prosecutors accuse him and several others of being alleged intellectual authors of the killing of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, who was shot by Colombian gunmen in Quito in 2023.

The case also includes former lawmaker Ronny Aleaga, businessmen Xavier Jordán and Daniel Salcedo, and three senior figures from the Los Lobos criminal group, including its leader Wilmer Chavarría, known as “Pipo,” who is detained in Spain.

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José Serrano Salgado, 168 hours incommunicado, seven days without contact with his family or lawyers. We do not know whether he is receiving the medicines he needs. We cannot directly confirm that he is alive.