Ecuador has detained former Interior Minister José Serrano Salgado at the El Encuentro maximum-security prison (officially the Santa Elena No. 1 Detention Center, on the country's Pacific coast) following his deportation from the United States, where his bid for political asylum was denied. According to an investigation by The New York Times, the charter flight carrying Serrano departed just 15 minutes after high-level talks between the US administration and Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, who publicly announced Serrano's return moments after takeoff. Serrano faces multiple criminal investigations in Ecuador, most notably allegations that he was a key organiser in the 2023 assassination of journalist and presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, as well as separate charges of bribery and influence peddling — charges his defence team contests as insufficiently evidenced.