Fernando Villavicencio, , Ecuadorian Presidential Candidate, , Assassinated.<br />Villavicencio was shot and killed at a campaign rally in Quito, Ecuador, on Aug. 9, NPR reports. .<br />His murder was confirmed by <br />President Guillermo Lasso, who suggested that organized crime was to blame.<br />His murder was confirmed by <br />President Guillermo Lasso, who suggested that organized crime was to blame.<br />I assure you that this crime will <br />not go unpunished. Organized crime has gone too far, but they will feel the full weight of the law, President Guillermo Lasso, via statement.<br />Villavicencio, who often spoke against corruption, previously said he was <br />receiving numerous death threats.<br />Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel was reportedly <br />among those issuing threats. .<br />Patricio Zuquilanda, Villavicencio's campaign adviser, said the 59-year-old politician was threatened at least three times prior to the shooting.<br />Zuquilanda notified authorities, <br />and one party was detained.<br />But the precautionary measures weren't enough, prompting Zuquilanda to call on the intervention of international authorities.<br />The Ecuadorian people are crying and Ecuador is mortally wounded. Politics cannot lead to the death <br />of any member of society, Patricio Zuquilanda, Villavicencio's campaign adviser, via statement.<br />Fellow presidential candidates <br />demanded action as well.<br />We are dying, drowning in a sea of tears and we do not deserve to live like this. We demand that you do something, Otto Sonnenholzner, presidential candidate <br />and former vice president, via statement.<br />When they touch one of us, <br />they touch all of us, Luisa González of the Citizen Revolution party, via statement
