César Byron Suárez Pilay (22 May 1985 – 17 January 2024) was an Ecuadorian prosecutor and lawyer. He was known for investigating several high-profile criminal cases, including the corruption case in Ecuadorian public hospitals, and the

TC Televisión TC Televisión is a state-owned television network in Ecuador. The network was founded in 1969 and was commercially funded for many years until 2011 when The Isaias Group went into a lawsuit and was sold to a state government unit, Since then the c ...

channel takeover case during the

2024 Ecuadorian conflict On 9 January 2024, an armed conflict broke out in Ecuador involving Government of Ecuador, the country's government against several organized crime groups, most notably the Los Choneros cartel. Reports of armed attacks throughout Guayaquil and ...

Early life and education

Suárez was born on 22 May 1985, in Paján Canton, province of Manabí, Ecuador. He completed five academic degrees including master's degrees in Procedural Law, Constitutional Law, Economic Criminal Law, Criminalistics, and Diplomacy.

Career

Suárez began his career in the province of Manabí, obtaining convictions in cases of murder, assassination, and femicide. In the city of

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, he was in charge of proceedings against drug trafficking gangs, cases delegated by the State Attorney General's Office, in which he prosecuted police officers, lawyers, public officials, and businessmen. In November 2018, Suárez became part of the Guayas Prosecutor's Office and, as of June 2019, he worked as a Public Administration prosecutor. In 2019, he was part of the investigation for influence peddling against the member and former president of the Council for Citizen Participation and Social Control, priest José Carlos Tuárez Zambrano. During 2020, Suárez carried out investigations against managers, former officials, and purchasing managers, among other public and private employees, for irregularities and corruption, in crimes of embezzlement and organized crime in the hospital system of the Abel Gilbert Hospital health centers, the IESS Los Ceibos Hospital and the Teodoro Maldonado Carbo Specialty Hospital. In these cases, the former head of public purchases and manager of the Luis Jairala Zambrano Hospital, Jorge Henriques, was involved in million-dollar purchases of overpriced medications, for which was requested a red alert from

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...

to find his whereabouts, and the brothers Noe and Daniel Salcedo Bonilla, who formed a network that illegally marketed medicines donated to social security and the Hospital del Guasmo, during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. In June 2020, he participated in an investigation into alleged trafficking of assets against former President

Abdalá Bucaram Abdalá Jaime Bucaram Ortiz ( ; ; born 20 February 1952) is an Ecuadorian politician and lawyer who was President of Ecuador from 10 August 1996, to 6 February 1997. As President, Abdalá Bucaram was nicknamed "El Loco Que Ama" ("The Madman Wh ...

and his son Jacobo. Suárez also investigated the case regarding the death of actor

Efraín Ruales Efraín Alberto Ruales Ríos (31 August 1984 in Guayaquil, Ecuador – 27 January 2021) was an Ecuadorian actor, model, musician and television presenter, known for his appearances in ''Solteros Sin Compromiso'', ''La panadería'', and ''¡Así P ...

in 2021. In 2021, he took part in the investigations of the case of fraud in the funds of the Social Security Institute of the National Police (ISSPOL), for which he requested the immobilization of around two hundred and seventy million dollars in Isspol papers in the Central Bank and Decevale. He participated in the sentencing for terrorism of eight individuals who carried out attacks on gas stations, homes, and Community Police Units, in November 2022, in the city of Durán. In 2024, he was in charge of the case for the armed raid of hooded criminals during a live broadcast on the TC Televisión channel, where he interrogated the 13 defendants.

Murder

Suárez was murdered by hitmen in the Los Ceibos sector of

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

on 17 January 2024, with 20 shots. He was 38. This occurred when the prosecutor was going from his home to the Judicial Unit of the Albán Borja Shopping Center, for a hearing for drug trafficking. The day before, he told the newspaper '' El Universo'' that he did not assign bodyguards to protect his life. However, the Prosecutor's Office assured Ecuavisa that the prosecutor did have protection, although they did not give details of it. On 18 January, two suspects were arrested in connection with Suárez's murder. The statement was confirmed by the

National Police of Ecuador The National Police of Ecuador ( es, Policía Nacional del Ecuador) is the national police force and the main civil law enforcement agency of Ecuador. It is commanded by the Commanding General (') and subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suarez, Cesar 1985 births 2024 deaths People from Manabí Province 21st-century Ecuadorian lawyers Prosecutors Deaths by firearm in Ecuador Ecuadorian murder victims People murdered in Ecuador People killed in the 2024 Ecuadorian conflict