Video shows Ecuadorian drug lord's lavish accommodations in prison

Ecuador, roiled by violence as gangs and terror groups stir up chaos nationwide. And tonight, CNN has a rare inside look at the country's prisons, including the lavish accommodations for the country's most notorious gang leaders. David Culver has this story. You'll see first on OUTFRONT. It's as though they're stepping into a war zone. Ecuador's military and national police trail an armored vehicle in a rate of one of the country's 35 prisons located inside, prisoners stripped down, hands tied.

Scenes like this have played out across Ecuador over the past few weeks. The armed forces making a very public show of force attempting to reinstate order within their own prisons. So far, it's part of Ecuador's effort to neutralize terror groups and weed out gangs, which have unleashed chaos nationwide. From a live TV studio, Armed Takeover to random shootings in the Streets. This most recent surge in violence sparked by the suspected escape of this man, Jose Adolfo macias, known as Fito. On Ja

nuary 7th, officials reported that while serving a 34 year sentence for murder and drug trafficking, the notorious gang leader vanished from this prison in Guayaquil. A drones view allows us to grasp the scale of this complex. It is sprawling. Not really much of a prison uniform. They're all kind of in their own clothes. Officials tell us it's made up of five different prisons through military and prison sources. We get a sense of the layout. We learn the women are kept here. These buildings hou

se the men and they range from minimum to medium security. And over here, maximum security known as La Roca or the Rock with a military escort. We go past the first of three perimeters. Any farther, we're told. Too dangerous, even with armed soldiers. We're told inmates are separated based on gang affiliation and are essentially self-ruled. And you can see behind one of these Gates folks kind of moving comfortably and casually from cell to cell. It's kind of an indoor outdoor complex. CNN obtain

ing these videos from inside. By prison standards, they reveal a life of luxury for Fito, the drug kingpin. The images captured last year by members of Ecuador's military. They appear to show fighters cell Messi, but complete with home comforts. A mini fridge, a queen bed, upscale shower fittings, artwork featuring an image of Fito himself with guns and cash, money and gold ring. He lives like a king. You can hear one of the soldiers say in this video obtained by CNN and verified by Ecuador's mi

litary. Outside his own courtyard and a half dozen fighting roosters believed to be his. A military source tells us Fito had fresh fish imported for his meals and somehow even managed to shoot a music video from within the prison walls. And we've learned nothing further in this acquisition, shall we? These images of Vito's 42nd birthday in 2022. The prisoners reportedly enjoyed cake, music and drinks. The night capped off with fireworks going quiet. He had more power outlets than a marriott hote

l room. Ecuador's president Daniel Noboa, said late last year. So why escape? Ecuadorian security experts believe that Fidel was tipped off that he was going to be transferred in the same complex back to the rock maximum security. Peter spent a few weeks in the rock last year. Moving him there involved an estimated 4000 police and soldiers. His sudden disappearance suggesting he wasn't ready to leave the comforts of his cell. The government's focus now is to reassert control within. But it won't

be easy. Prison raids have turned up everything from laptops to guns or present all of these. And you have it a while. Nabil also announcing the construction of new prisons designed by the same company behind El Salvador's notorious mega prisons, where thousands of suspected gang members are locked up. Back outside of the prison in Guayaquil, you can hear there's church services going on, some sort of religious ceremony. Loudspeakers. Soldiers and police stand guard on the perimeter, knowing th

at it's often the gangs who still dictate what happens on the inside. David Cole, CNN, Guayaquil, Ecuador.