Gustavo Adolfo López Davidson (1961 – 21 July 2022) was a

Salvadoran Salvadorans (Spanish: ''Salvadoreños''), also known as Salvadorians (alternate spelling: Salvadoreans), are citizens of El Salvador, a country in Central America. Most Salvadorans live in El Salvador, although there is also a significant Salvado ...

politician and businessman who served as the leader of the

Nationalist Republican Alliance The Nationalist Republican Alliance ( es, Alianza Republicana Nacionalista, ARENA) is a conservative, right-wing political party of El Salvador. It was founded on 30 September 1981 by retired Salvadoran Army Major Roberto D'Aubuisson. It defines ...

(ARENA) from August 2019 to February 2020.

Biography

Gustavo Adolfo López Davidson was born in 1961. López Davidson was the manager of Alquileres S.A. de C.V. (previously known as Centrum S.A. de C.V.) and the owner of Gun Mart, two companies which imports firearms into

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

. As a member of the right-wing

(ARENA), he ran for mayor of

Soyapango Soyapango is a Municipalities of El Salvador, municipality in the San Salvador Department, San Salvador department of El Salvador. Soyapango is a commercial center. The municipality is the third most populated area in the country, with 290,412 in ...

in 2003. López Davidson sought to run as ARENA's candidate for

president of El Salvador The president of El Salvador ( es, Presidente de El Salvador), officially known as the President of the Republic of El Salvador ( es, Presidente de la República de El Salvador), is the Head of State, head of state and Head of Government, head ...

in the 2019 presidential election, but

Carlos Calleja Juan Carlos Calleja Hakker (born 11 February 1976) is a Salvadoran businessman and politician. He is currently vice president of Grupo Calleja, owner of the largest supermarket chain ( Super Selectos) in El Salvador—and former candidate for ...

was ultimately selected as ARENA's candidate instead. From 25 August 2019 to 17 February 2020, López Davidson served as the leader of the Nationalist Executive Committee (COENA), the leading authority of the Nationalist Republican Alliance. He first became a member of the committee in 2003. He resigned amidst allegations of his involvement in

arms trafficking Arms trafficking or gunrunning is the illicit trade of contraband small arms and ammunition, which constitutes part of a broad range of illegal activities often associated with transnational criminal organizations. The illegal trade of small a ...

. In December 2019, the Nationalist Republican Alliance attempted to repeal the immunity of then Salvadoran President

Nayib Bukele Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez (; born 24 July 1981) is a Salvadoran politician and businessman who is the 43rd president of El Salvador, serving since 1 June 2019. He is the first president since José Napoleón Duarte (1984–1989) not to have ...

so that López Davidson could sue Bukele for defamation, as Bukele had publicly called López Davidson a "crook". On 9 August 2020, López Davidson was arrested by the National Civil Police (PNC) on charges of

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

, accused of having collected USD$2 million on old guns which he sold as "new" through Centrum S.A. de C.V. López Davidson committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

by a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his business in

San Salvador San Salvador (; ) is the capital and the largest city of El Salvador and its eponymous department. It is the country's political, cultural, educational and financial center. The Metropolitan Area of San Salvador, which comprises the capital i ...

on 21 July 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez Davidson, Gustavo 1961 births 2022 deaths Salvadoran politicians Nationalist Republican Alliance politicians Salvadoran businesspeople