A court in Ecuador handed lengthy prison sentences Monday to a group of eleven soldiers who were responsible for the abduction and torture of four children last year — a case that has rattled the South American nation and raised questions about President Daniel Noboa’s efforts to militarize some cities amid a surge in drug-related violence.
The court sentenced the soldiers to 34 years in prison for the “forced disappearance” of the children, and said the defendants would have to pay $10,000 fines to the families of the victims and ask for forgiveness in public.
