The six detained in connection with the killing of Ecuadorian candidate Fernando Villavicencio are Colombians, according to authorities.

(CNN Spanish) – Interior Minister Juan Zapata confirmed to CNN on Thursday that the six men arrested in connection with the assassination of Fernando Villavicencio, the Ecuadorian presidential candidate, are Colombians.

Hours earlier, during a press conference, Zapata had reported that all those arrested were foreigners and belonged to criminal groups, according to preliminary evidence.

The police recognized them only by their first name and initial. A picture of the detainees with their hands tied and their backs against the wall was also revealed.

For its part, the Ecuadorean Public Prosecutor’s Office indicated through A launch The six persons were arrested during raids carried out in the districts of Conocoto and San Bartolo in Quito.

Zapata said that during the nighttime raids, authorities also found a rifle, a submachine gun, four handguns, three hand grenades, two rifle magazines, four boxes of ammunition, two motorcycles, and a stolen car that the men are believed to have used.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office added that the forensic medicine department proceeded to remove the body of Fernando Villavicencio from the health home and transport it for an autopsy.

With information from Ana Maria Cañizares and David Shortell.