KONGKRIT.COM — Puerto Lopez Beach in Ecuador, which has long been known as a favorite tourist destination, suddenly turned into a terrifying location after five human heads were found hanging on the beach, Sunday (11/1/2026).
This discovery occurred between wooden poles around the beach and immediately shocked local residents and tourists who were at the location. Security forces immediately secured the area to prevent wider panic.
Based on a report by local media Primicias quoted by the New York Post on Sunday (18/1/2026), the five human heads were tied using green rope.
Not far from the discovery location, police also found a board containing a threatening message aimed at criminal groups. The message requested that acts of extortion against local fishermen be stopped immediately.
In the writing on the board, the perpetrators said that the area was under their control and warned criminal gangs not to rob or pressure fishermen anymore.
Until now, the authorities have not found the body of the beheaded victim. However, the local police stated that they had succeeded in identifying the identities of the five victims.
From the data collection results, only one victim was known to have a criminal record, namely Bernardo Ramon Medranda Mendoza (24), who had been involved in cases of possession and use of firearms.
No suspects have been arrested in connection with this case. The Puerto Lopez region itself is known to be experiencing an escalation of violence which is strongly suspected to be related to the activities of international drug cartels.
Some time earlier, on December 28, a brutal shooting in the same beach area killed six people, including a baby, and injured three other people.
Ecuador has long been one of the main routes for the world cocaine trade because of its strategic location between Peru and Colombia, the two largest cocaine producing countries.
Editor : Hanny Tanjung
Source : Traveldetik.com