THIS is the terrifying moment armed men disguised as police officers stormed a football pitch in Ecuador and murdered three people in cold blood.
Security footage from a gated community outside the port city of Guayaquil shows what begins as an ordinary evening game on an artificial football pitch.
The attackers quickly identified their targetCredit: Newsflash
The rest of the people there quickly dropped to the floor
Three masked men dressed like law enforcement officers suddenly enter the pitch.
Realising something is wrong, the players drop to the ground, desperately trying to avoid drawing attention to themselves.
The gunmen quickly single out their target – a man dressed in black standing at the centre of the field.
The attackers kick the man as he lies helpless on the ground.
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With a boot pressed firmly against his head, one of the masked men shoots him dead, executing him at point-blank range as the other players look on in horror.
Moments later, the gunmen scuttle off as quickly as they arrived.
Slowly, the remaining men rise to their feet, stunned and disbelieving.
Without a moment’s hesitation, they flee the pitch, leaving the victim’s lifeless body lying alone in the centre of the field.
The entire attack lasted just five minutes.
In the aftermath of the shooting, two additional bodies were discovered in the surrounding area.
According to Ecuadorian newspaper El Universo, the attackers had beaten the community’s security guards, tied them up, and stolen their weapons before carrying out the hit.
One of the victims was identified as Stalin Rolando Olivero Vargas, who went by the alias “Marino.”
He had previously been sentenced to six years in prison in 2011 for robbery.
The 40-year-old was believed to be the leader of the local organised crime gang Los Lagartos — meaning The Lizards.
The gang controls several areas in southern Guayaquil, particularly in the Guasmo Sur sector, and has long been on police radar.
Interior Minister Juan Reimburg said Vargas may have been targeted by a rival gang.
The two other victims were identified as 33-year-old Jefferson Xavier Salon Olivero and 29-year-old Richard Josue Mina Vergara.
Both men reportedly had extensive criminal records, including charges related to international drug trafficking, murder, and robbery.
Reimburg also revealed that Vargas had been considering leaving Los Lagartos to join a rival criminal organisation known as Los Lobos – The Wolves – a move that may have sealed his fate.
Police had been monitoring Vargas closely in the weeks leading up to the killing.
Just days before the attack, authorities had carried out searches in a nearby residential area in an attempt to locate him.
Investigators also identified Vargas as the romantic partner of Micaela Morales Arcos, the daughter of former Guayas province prefect Carlos Luis Morales.
No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting.
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The investigation remains ongoing.
The group had been enjoying a game of football beforehandCredit: Newsflash
After the men left, the group wasted no time and ran offCredit: Newsflash
