Ecuador says it has no evidence that survivor of a US strike in the Caribbean committed any crime

QUITO (AP) — The survivor of a U.S. strike on a submersible vessel accused by the Trump administration of transporting drugs in the Caribbean was released by authorities in Ecuador after prosecutors said they had no evidence he committed a crime in the South American nation, a government official said Monday.

The official, who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak on the matter, told The Associated Press that the Ecuadorian man, identified as Andrés Fernando Tufiño, was in good health after medical evaluations.

A document from the Ecuadorian government obtained by AP said “there is no evidence or indication that could lead prosecutors or judicial authorities to be certain” of any violation of current laws by Tufiño.

AP requested comment from the Attorney General’s Office, but did not immediately receive a response.

The man was repatriated by the United States over the weekend following a U.S. military attack on a submersible vessel suspected of transporting drugs in the Caribbean. A Colombian citizen also survived the attack and remains hospitalized after being repatriated to that country.

U.S. military personnel rescued both men after destroying the submersible on Thursday. Trump said on social media that U.S. intelligence confirmed the vessel was carrying “mostly fentanyl and other illegal drugs.”

There is little evidence to indicate that fentanyl is produced in the Andes, as the vast majority of it flows into the U.S. through Mexico.

Trump said that two people on board were killed, and the two survivors were being repatriated to their home countries “for detention and prosecution.”

The attack on the submersible was at least the sixth of its kind since September. A seventh that occurred Friday, was reported over the weekend, bringing the total deaths from the attacks to at least 32. The strikes have set off tensions in the region, particularly between Trump, Venezuela and Colombia, once one of the American government’s tightest allies in the Western Hemisphere.

The Colombian government said its survivor “will be prosecuted according to the law” for alleged drug trafficking. It noted that the man was seriously wounded.

Colombia’s government said Monday that it had recalled its ambassador to the United States following an increasingly angry back-and-forth between its president, Gustavo Petro, and Trump over the strikes.

Tensions increased Sunday when Trump called Petro “an illegal drug leader” and “a lunatic” after Petro accused the U.S. government of killing a Colombian citizen in a Sept. 16 strike on a boat the U.S. said was allegedly carrying drugs.

Meanwhile, Ecuador’s conservative president, Daniel Noboa, said Monday in a message on X addressed to his U.S. counterpart: “President Trump, Ecuador remains firm in the global fight against drug trafficking.” He added that such challenges “require unity among nations committed to peace and prosperity.”

Trump has justified the actions, saying the United States is engaged in an “armed conflict” against drug cartels.

He has relied on the same legal reasoning used by the George W. Bush administration when it declared war on terrorism after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. It includes the authority to capture and detain combatants and use lethal force to eliminate their leaders.

___

Associated Press journalist Astrid Suárez in Bogota, Colombia contributed to this report.