Desecration Reported: Body of Ecuadorian Gangster Junior Roldán Taken from Cemetery

According to the police, the body of an Ecuadorean gang leader named Junior Roldán has disappeared from a cemetery in Colombia. After nobody claimed his body, Roldán's remains were placed in a wall vault in the town of Envigado. He was the second-in-command of Los Choneros, a prison gang known for terrorizing Ecuador. In May, Roldán was found shot dead with bullet wounds to the head in Colombia's Antioquia province. Prior to his death, he had survived two attempts on his life in Ecuador and had sought refuge in Colombia. Police suspect that his bodyguard killed him in order to steal the large sum of cash that Roldán had taken with him while in hiding, but no arrests have been made in connection with the murder. Roldán was identified by his tattoos and was laid to rest in a wall vault in a cemetery south of Medellín. However, on Tuesday, workers discovered that a gate to the cemetery was open, and upon searching the grounds, they noticed that Roldán's vault was empty. Officials later confirmed that his body had been stolen by a group of men who had broken into the cemetery overnight. It is unclear at this time if the suspects specifically targeted Roldán's remains and what their motive may have been. Roldán had many enemies, as he had been previously shot and injured by a rival gang called Los Lobos. He had also survived an attack where explosive-laden drones were set off above the prison wing where he was detained. Los Choneros mainly engages in drug trafficking and extortion and has become one of Ecuador's most powerful prison gangs after many of its members were imprisoned. The gang is known for its involvement in gruesome prison fights in Ecuador, where dozens of inmates have been killed and at times beheaded. Recently, Los Choneros has formed an alliance with Mexico's Sinaloa cartel, which has further strengthened its power.