Ecuadorian USB bomb attacks

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The Ecuadorian USB bomb attacks occurred in March 2023 when boobytrapped USB drives were sent to Ecuadorian media. [1] [2] [3] One journalist was injured. [1] [2]

Lenin Artieda suffered minor injuries when he plugged in a USB drive he had received at Ecuavisa in Guayaquil. [1] [2] Police carried out a controlled explosion on a similar device sent to TC Televisión, also in Guayaquil. [1] [2] Freedom of expression group said that a third media group had been attacked. [1] [2] Teleamazonas said that one of their journalists had received an anonymous envelope with a device inside that police confirmed contained explosives.

Other devices sent via post either never exploded or were never opened. [1] [2]

Two of the devices were found at media outlets in Guayaquil, two in Quito and one at a package delivery company. [3]

Reactions

The department of the attorney general of Ecuador confirmed that it had opened a terrorism investigation on 20 March 2023. [1] [2]

According to interior minister Juan Zapata the letters were all sent from the same town, with three going to Guayaqil and two to Quito. [1] [2]

The head of the forensic sciences services said the devices contained "military-type" explosives. [1] [2]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Radford, Antoinette (2023-03-21). "Journalist opens USB letter bomb in newsroom". BBC News . Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Ecuadorian TV presenter wounded by bomb disguised as USB stick". The Guardian . 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  3. 1 2 Claburn, Thomas (2023-03-22). "Journalist hurt by exploding USB bomb drive". The Register . Retrieved 2023-03-30.