U.S. offers $5M reward for Los Choneros leader
The State Department announced Thursday a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Francisco Manuel Bermúdez Cagua, 29, aka “Churron,” a top lieutenant of Ecuador’s Los Choneros, which the U.S. designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization in September 2025. Bermúdez Cagua is charged in a superseding indictment unsealed in June in the Eastern District of New York with international cocaine distribution conspiracy, distribution, and using firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking; co‑conspirator José “Fito” Macías was extradited to New York in July, and Darío “Topo” Peñafiel remains in custody in Ecuador.
📌 Key Facts
- State Department Narcotics Rewards Program set a bounty up to $5,000,000 for Bermúdez Cagua on Dec. 11, 2025.
- EDNY superseding indictment (unsealed June 2025) charges cocaine trafficking and firearms offenses.
- Los Choneros was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization in Sept. 2025; co-conspirator “Fito” was extradited to NY in July 2025.
📊 Relevant Data
In 2023, the age-adjusted cocaine-involved overdose death rate among non-Hispanic Black persons in the US was 24.3 per 100,000, compared to the overall rate of 8.6 per 100,000, while non-Hispanic Black persons comprise approximately 13.7% of the US population.
Global cocaine production reached 2,757 tons in 2022, marking a 20% increase from the previous year.
Cocaine Surge Fuels Violence, Opium Falls: UN Drug Report 2024 — InSight Crime
Ecuador seized more than 195 tons of cocaine in 2023, ranking second globally for cocaine seizures that year.
The surge in gang violence in Ecuador is fueled by the fragmentation of criminal networks following government crackdowns, leading to increased homicides and bloodshed.
Ecuador's crackdown on gangs fractures criminal networks and fuels bloodshed — Reuters