Shootout at Ecuador nightclub kills 8 as violent crime surges, police say

A shooting at a nightclub in Santa Lucía, Ecuador, on Sunday left eight people dead and three injured, marking another violent incident in the country’s coastal Guayas province. Police said the attackers, armed and arriving on motorcycles and in vehicles, opened fire on victims aged 20 to 40. The motive remains unknown, but authorities link recent violence to organized crime groups tied to international drug cartels, CBS News has reported. Ecuador has recorded over 4,600 killings so far in 2025, with several coastal provinces under a state of emergency amid a surge in drug-related violence.