Judge orders pretrial detention for Vinces mayor and nine others in Ecuador money-laundering case
Illustrative image: a judge’s gavel. Photo: Sasun Bughdaryan / Unsplash (Unsplash License). Not taken at the hearing.
A judge in Ecuador has ordered pretrial detention for Juan Alfonso Montalván Cerezo, the mayor of Vinces in Los Ríos province, and nine other defendants accused of money laundering, one day after a dawn operation in which police and prosecutors detained 16 people, including the mayor’s mother, son and brother.
The charging hearing opened on Wednesday night, October 28, and the decision came on Thursday, October 29, according to Notimundo and Radio Pichincha. Prosecutors had asked for pretrial detention for 11 people and for alternative measures for one elderly defendant. A twelfth person, detained on Wednesday night, was added during the hearing. The judge sent ten to pretrial detention; the other two must report periodically to the authorities and may not leave the country. The reports did not name the judge or say which two defendants received the lighter measures.
Operation Gran Fénix 066
The operation, called Gran Fénix 066, began in the early hours of Wednesday with about 20 raids, most of them in Vinces and the rest in Guayas and Azuay. Primicias, citing the Attorney General’s Office, put the number at 21. Officers also gathered evidence at the Vinces municipal offices. Among the 16 people detained were the mayor’s relatives, four municipal officials and two people who were already in prison for other cases, according to El Universo.
The Attorney General’s Office said on X that 12 of the detainees would face charges, while the arrests of the other four were for investigative purposes.
Source: Fiscalía General del Estado on X (@FiscaliaEcuador), October 28, 2026.
What investigators allege
According to the National Police, the alleged network used a company, Constructora Aldrensa S.A., which had been flagged by Ecuador’s financial intelligence unit (UAFE), to move about $3.22 million through the financial system. Investigators say the suspects increased their assets between 2019 and 2026 by buying vehicles and property. Henry Tapia, the police’s national director of investigations, said transactions between individuals and companies “were not properly justified.”
Interior Minister John Reimberg described the mayor as the alleged leader of the network and said there were financial links to people investigated for drug trafficking, arms trafficking and organised crime in the Narcofiesta, Gran Fénix Cantabria and Metástasis cases, and to the Los Choneros and Los Lobos gangs.
Source: Policía Nacional del Ecuador on X (@PoliciaEcuador), October 28, 2026.
Police seized six vehicles, two firearms, 27 mobile devices, $2,500 in cash and documents, El Universo reported. They said they would ask for bank accounts to be frozen and for 15 properties and 23 vehicles, valued at about $2 million, to be seized.
A Primicias review of company filings found that Aldrensa’s equity grew about 570% between 2018 and 2022, from $25,882 to $173,491. The mayor owns 25% of the company and a relative owns 75%. His own sworn asset declarations went from $243,141 in 2019 to $508,247 in 2026, the outlet reported.
Who is the mayor
Montalván has led Vinces since 2019. He was first elected for Fuerza Ecuador and re-elected in 2023 with the backing of a CREO–SUMA alliance. The case is the latest in a run of raids on local governments, after operations at Cuenca’s city hall and at Quito’s municipality and its public works company in recent days.
Confirmed and pending
Confirmed: the arrests, the number of detainees, the money-laundering charge and the pretrial detention order for ten defendants. Pending: the judge’s name, the identity of the two defendants with alternative measures, and any public response from the mayor or his lawyers, which we could not find. All the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Sources
- Notimundo — Pretrial detention ordered for Vinces mayor and other defendants (Oct 29, 2026)
- Radio Pichincha — Judge orders pretrial detention for Vinces mayor and nine others (Oct 29, 2026)
- El Diario — Prosecutors request pretrial detention for Vinces mayor (Oct 29, 2026)
- El Universo — Mayor’s son, mother and brother among 16 detained (Oct 28, 2026)
- Primicias — Vinces mayor detained in money-laundering operation (Oct 28, 2026)
- Primicias — Mayor’s construction company grew its equity 570% (Oct 28, 2026)
Celina Santa Cruz · Ecuador · Virtual editorial byline
English adaptation: Lin Wei · Editorial direction: Leonidas Ferraz · October 29, 2026 · AI-assisted writing
