Villavicencio, from the Andean province of Chimborazo, was a former union member at state oil company Petroecuador and later a journalist who denounced alleged millions in oil contract losses.
He had on Tuesday made a report to the Attorney-General’s office about an oil business, but no further details of his report were made public.
As a legislator, Villavicencio was criticised by opposition politicians for obstructing an impeachment process this year against Lasso, which lead the latter to call the early elections.
“Today more than ever, the need to act with a strong hand against crime is reiterated. May God have him in his glory,” fellow presidential hopeful Jan Topic said in a post on X.
lice guard the hospital where several of the injured were taken after an attack against presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in Quito.Credit: AP
Villavicencio was married and is survived by five children.
Early accounts show that several others were injured from shrapnel, though authorities did not confirm how many.
Lasso said he would host top security officials at an urgent meeting.
Police confirmed that several others were injured, including officers, describing the incident as a terrorist act and promising to get to the bottom of the killing.
Zuquilanda, the campaign adviser, said the candidate had received death threats before the shooting, which he had reported to authorities. He called on international authorities to act against the violence, attributing it to rising violence and drug trafficking. The South American nation is experiencing a startling wave of violence, with drug trafficking and violent killings on the rise.
“The Ecuadorian people are crying and Ecuador is mortally wounded,” he said. “Politics cannot lead to the death of any member of society.”
Fernando Villavicencio was one of the country’s most critical voices against corruption.Credit: Reuters
Other candidates echoed Zuquilanda in their demands for action, with former vice president Otto Sonnenholzner saying in a news conference, “We are dying, drowning in a sea of tears and we do not deserve to live line this. We demand that you do something”.
A suspect in the killing died from injuries sustained during a shootout, the Attorney-General’s office said on X.
“A suspect, who was injured during the shootout with security personnel, was apprehended and moved, badly injured, to the (Attorney-General’s) unit in Quito. An ambulance from the fire department confirmed his death, the police are proceeding with collection of the cadaver,” the office said.
Reuters, AP
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