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Jackson Rodríguez is going through a horrifying experience. According to the Associated Press, which cited authorities, the Ecuadorian soccer player's wife and 5-year-old child were abducted during a home invasion at his Guayaquil property on April 23.
The kidnappings took place at approximately 3:30 in the morning, according to police head Édison Rodríguez.
According to the AP, Jackson, 26, testified to authorities that he heard the front door being smashed down and hid beneath a bed in their residence. He also claimed to have heard the criminals asking his wife if she was home.
According to police, from a window, the defender for the Emelec club claimed to have seen "the individuals were traveling in a gray-colored double-cab pickup truck."
According to CBS News, the horrifying event happened ten days after Ecuador's government proclaimed a state of emergency in seven of its twenty-four provinces, including Guayas, the province where Guayaquil is located, claiming it was necessary to combat drug-related violence.
According to a proclamation he signed, President Daniel Noboa imposed the measure, which is expected to endure for 60 days, claiming an "increase in violence, serious crime, and the intense unlawful activities of organized armed groups," as reported by CBS.
The order temporarily suspends legal protection against unauthorized search and entry of homes and mail, as well as freedom of assembly, in addition to imposing a curfew on cities in the affected provinces, including Guayaquil.
With an average of one murder every hour, CBS News reports that the beginning of 2025 was among the bloodiest in Ecuador. According to the AP, 742 of the 2,345 violent killings documented between January and March took place in Guayaquil.
Authorities claim that illegal drug shipments are transferred from the city's ports to Europe, Central America, and the United States, making the coastal city one of the most hazardous in the nation, according to the AP.
An athlete has before been the object of harassment. According to CBS News, soccer player Pedro Perlaza was abducted in Esmeraldas, a city north of Quito, in December 2024.
According to the site, the Liga de Quito player was taken hostage for three days before being freed, along with a second victim, following a firefight between police and his captors.
Esmeraldas’ head of police, Diego Velastegui, told reporters, “They’ve been badly treated, but they’re alive.”
