Bodies found near an Ecuadorian military base are those of four boys who went missing while playing soccer, officials say

Genetic tests on charred bodies found near an Ecuadorian military base have confirmed they belong to four boys taken by soldiers three weeks ago, authorities said Tuesday.

The disappearance of boys between the ages of 11 and 15 has sparked protests in the South American country. drug gangs and security forces.

Brothers Saul Arboleda, Steven Medina and Josue and Ismael Arroyo went missing on December 8 while playing soccer in the western city of Guayaquil.

“The results of the genetic forensic examination confirm that the 4 bodies found in Taura correspond to the three teenagers and boys who disappeared after the military operation on December 8,” the Ecuadorian prosecutor’s office wrote on the social network.

In an unverified video released by Ecuador’s Congress, a group of soldiers is seen beating one of the minors in a car while another is seen face down.

Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo said that soldiers on patrol responded to a request for help due to a robbery.

The Associated Press reports that the military said the children were released the night they were detained and that the gangs were responsible for their disappearance.

The incident sparked widespread outrage in Ecuador, where kidnappings, extortion and murder are commonplace.

The father of one of the boys said that his family called him on the night of their disappearance, and Ismail spoke on the phone that night. The child said that the soldiers chased them, took them away and beat them.

The relatives then obtained two locations via WhatsApp, one in Taura, where the air base is located, and the other near a shrimp farm.

An anonymous caller told the family that criminals had taken the boys.

On December 24, the charred remains of four bodies were found near the Taura base, raising fears that they belonged to the missing boys, although officials said at the time that DNA tests were needed.

In a statement released by prosecutors on Tuesday, the bodies were confirmed as belonging to teenagers.

Earlier last week, authorities raided the Taura base and seized the phones of 16 soldiers suspected of being missing, as well as vehicles used to transport minors.

Soldiers in military custody were arrested by the criminal court on Tuesday.

The boys’ enforced disappearance is under investigation and, if found guilty, could face up to 26 years in prison.

Soldiers say they released the boys in the area after a brief detention, at which time all four were alive and well.

In a statement on behalf of the government, the Ministry of Defense said it was “with deep regret” that the bodies were confirmed to be those of the missing teenagers.

“We reaffirm our commitment to the truth so that this case is handled with full transparency until we find the person responsible for this murder,” he said.

Dozens of relatives, neighbors and activists holding placards held a protest in front of the court demanding the arrest of the soldiers.

President Daniel Noboa announced last January “internal armed conflict” situation following a wave of brutal violence sparked by the release of a powerful crime boss.

The move came later armed men raided and opened fire in a television studio and thugs threatened civilians and security forces with random executions. He later became a prosecutor investigating the attack was shot.