José Agusto Briones, former energy minister and presidential adviser to Ecuador’s outgoing president, Leín Moreno, was found dead this Saturday. The former official was serving pre-trial detention, iding in a corruption investigation.” We confirmed the news of José Agusto Briones’ death at Prison No. 4 in the city of Quito,” Government Minister Gabriel Martínez said on Twitter. Martinez added that “the cause of death is being investigated” and announced that the government will continue to “report this unfortunate event in the coming hours.” At the same time, the National Comprehensive Service for Private Adults of Liberty and Infringing Adolescents of Ecuador (SNAI) reported that “specialized units” of the Prosecutor’s Office and the Police investigated the “alleged suicide” of “José A.”.
Brions with Lenín Moreno. The president received with “deep pain” the death of his “dear friend.”
This afternoon, Moreno himself said, also on Twitter, that he had received the news of the death of his “dear friend in deep pain.” Until this afternoon, the conditions under which the ex-official’s body was found had not transcended, although the SNAI report provides some indications that what might have happened. Brions, who was 59 years old, was successively senior adviser to the Minister of Hydrocarbons, Secretary of Planning and Development, Secretary General of the Presidency and Minister of Energy between May 2017 and March 2020.The former official was imprisoned since 13 April last, suspected of having committed organized crime, after the Prosecutor’s Office and the Police raided his home in the context of the investigation of a bribery case in exchange for leaving beating penalty notices in contracts with the state-owned Petroecuador.For the case, known as Las Torres, ex-contract Pablo Celi and five others, according to the newspaper El Comercio and the news portal GK, are also imprisoned in the same penalty. In addition, a total of 14 people are prosecuted, including Luis Agusto Briones, brother of José.Moreno will finish his term tomorrow, when he will be succeeded by the president-elect, Guillermo Lasso.
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