Ecuador offers $100,000 reward for information on lawmaker accused of raping a minor

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador’s government on Sunday offered a $100,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of a lawmaker whom authorities accused of raping a minor.

The case against Santiago Díaz Asque became public when he was expelled from an opposition party earlier this week. Interior Minister Jhon Reimberg in a post on X said the reward is for “true and verifiable” information on Díaz’s location.

Authorities on Wednesday raided three properties linked to the case, but prosecutor’s have declined to provide details of the investigation.

Díaz requested unpaid leave from the National Assembly after he was kicked out of the Citizen Revolution party, but it was denied. He also published a letter in which he rejected the accusation and characterized it as at attempt to “silence my incorruptible and critical voice.”

If convicted, Díaz could face up to 22 years in prison under current law.

President Daniel Noboa on Friday said he had sent lawmakers a proposed constitutional reform that would allow the chemical castration of people convicted of rape. He said the National Assembly would now get to show “who truly stands with the victims and who is willing to protect the abusers.”