In a shocking act of violence that has left supporters reeling, Landy Párraga, a former beauty queen and model, was brutally murdered inside a cevichería in Quevedo, Ecuador. The crime took place at La Cuadra shopping center, located in the El Guayacán parish.

Párraga was having breakfast when a group of hitmen stormed into the establishment and repeatedly shot her, causing her immediate death.

The name of Landy Párraga had been previously mentioned in the Metástasis case, an investigation into drug trafficking that has led to several individuals being imprisoned. According to chats revealed in this case, Párraga was linked to the drug trafficker Leandro Norero and his lawyer, Helive Angulo, also known as Estimado.

However, she was not officially linked to any illegal activities.

A resident of Santo Domingo, Párraga had traveled to Quevedo to attend the wedding of the former vice-prefect of Los Ríos, Jhoa Chon-Qui. Her last Instagram posts showcased happy moments from that wedding.

With a distinguished career in beauty pageants, Párraga had become a recognized figure on social media, where she shared her life and projects with over 130,000 followers.

Around noon on Sunday, multiple gunshots were heard in a cevichería at a commercial plaza in the city of Quevedo, in the Los Ríos province, which ended in the loss of a life. The victim was Landy Párraga, a 23-year-old model who had been the runner-up of the Quevedo canton in 2019 and a candidate for Miss Ecuador in 2022.

The former beauty queen was in the company of someone when the hitmen entered and took her life. In response to this news, the governor of the Los Ríos province commented on the incident, stating that investigations into this murder are underway. He stated, “We are in the investigative process with the judicial police, and we expect to have more details from the prosecutor’s office in the coming hours.”

The controversy surrounding criminal investigations continues to stir up Ecuador. Now, the murder of former Miss Ecuador Landy Párraga has sparked significant controversy because the beauty queen had been mentioned in a case involving an alleged scheme of judicial, police, and prison corruption known as Metástasis.

It is known that she was killed this Sunday while dining at a restaurant, and the exact moment of the attack was captured on security cameras, quickly becoming viral on social media.

Landy Párraga, a 23-year-old model and former beauty queen, was shot dead while having lunch at a restaurant in Ecuador. The tragic news occurred minutes after she shared a photo of the place on her Instagram account.

In addition to her modeling career, Párraga was also a social communicator and had participated in various beauty contests in Ecuador. In 2022, representing the province of Los Ríos, she was a candidate for Miss Ecuador, managing to reach the top five finalists. On the night of April 27, Párraga attended a wedding, and the next day at noon, she posted a picture of her lunch on her social networks.

Two armed men stormed into the restaurant where she was accompanied by her partner. She tried to duck when she saw the attackers but received multiple shots and died on the spot. Her partner, identified as José Luis Betancur, a plastic surgeon, was unharmed.

It is remembered that in December 2023, Landy Párraga had been mentioned in conversations revealed by the Ecuadorian Attorney General’s Office related to the Metástasis case.

These chats involved Leandro Norero Tigua, a deceased drug trafficker in 2022, and Eli Ver Angulo, his lawyer. The attack has caused great controversy because Párraga’s name had been linked to the alleged drug trafficker and money launderer Leandro Norero and the Metástasis case. In this investigation, Ecuadorian authorities are probing an alleged corruption network in favor of criminal structures, evidenced after accessing the information contained in Norero’s cell phone, murdered in 2022. It was in January of this year when Landy Párraga was mentioned in one of the chats of the drug trafficker Norero.

The investigative process is currently underway, analyzing surveillance footage and other evidence to apprehend the perpetrators of this heinous crime. The scene was cordoned off as forensic experts arrived to collect evidence and conduct investigations alongside the National Police.

Aside from her modeling career, Landy Párraga worked as a social communicator and influencer, dedicating her time to volunteering in solidarity projects, such as collecting pallets for the construction of shelters after the 2016 earthquake in Manabí.

As the investigation unfolds, the public awaits further developments in this tragic case that has shaken the nation and brought attention to the complex interplay between beauty, fame, and criminality.