Ecuador court sentences five people for up to 34 years in candidate murder

FILE PHOTO: Police officers stand guard as the trial with five people accused of involvement in the assassination of Ecuadorean anti-corruption presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio is set to begin, in Quito, Ecuador, June 25, 2024. REUTERS/Karen Toro/File Photo

QUITO (Reuters) -A court in Ecuador on Friday handed down prison sentences of 12 years and 34 years for five people found guilty of murdering presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio.

Journalist and former legislator Villavicencio was shot while leaving a rally in August 2023, becoming the most prominent victim of Ecuador's spiraling violence.