Ecuadorian footballer Mario Pineida killed in shooting in Guayaquil
Ecuadorian footballer Mario Pineida has been shot dead in the port city of Guayaquil, his club has confirmed.
The 33 year old was killed on Wednesday in a city that has increasingly become a centre of gang related violence connected to drug trafficking. In recent months, several footballers in Ecuador have been targeted. Pineida had represented the national team during the 2018 and 2022 World Cup campaigns and also spent time with Brazilian side Fluminense in 2022.
Barcelona SC confirmed the tragic news in a statement shared on X, saying the club was deeply saddened to announce it had been officially informed of the death of its player Mario Pineida following an attack in Guayaquil.
The Interior Ministry also confirmed his death and revealed that a special police unit has been assigned to investigate the case.
According to local digital news outlet Primicias, Pineida was attacked by two assailants on motorcycles who opened fire on him, his mother, and another woman.
The killing comes amid a worrying rise in violence affecting football figures in the country. In September, three players from Ecuador’s second division were killed, with one of the cases reportedly linked to sports betting. The following month, local footballer Bryan Angula was injured in a separate shooting incident.
Ecuador, once considered one of the safest countries in Latin America, has become a major transit route for cocaine moving from top producing nations Colombia and Peru to markets around the world.
Guayaquil has been particularly hard hit, with car bombings, shootings, and extortion on the increase. The city recorded around 1,900 murders between January and September, marking the highest number of killings in Ecuador during that period.
