USB Drive IEDs Sent to Five Journalists in Radio and TV Stations in Ecuador: New (Narco) Terrorist TTP C/O Futures Terrorism Research Note Series Robert J. Bunker 24 March 2023
On Monday 20 March 2023, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) drive IED (Improvised Explosive Device) detonated when plugged into a computer at the Ecuavisa TV station in Ecuador. The reporter handling the drive sustained minor injuries to his hand and face due to the effects of the blast. A total of five envelopes containing these devices (along with written messages) were mailed out from the town of Quimsaloma to TV and radio reporters in the towns of Guayaquil and Quito in Ecuador. It is currently assumed that the perpetrator of this attack may be a criminal gang involved in cocaine trafficking and potentially linked to a Mexican cartel. Ecuador is presently being consumed by narco violence with this coordinated attack—based on the use of USB drive IEDs—representing a new type of (narco) terrorist TTP (Tactic, Technique, and Procedure).[1]
