Crime

Tory Lanez recibió la visita de una persona muy especial mientras cumple su tiempo tras las rejas, ¡¡¡su hijo Kai!!!

Ceasar McDowell, un miembro del equipo legal de Tory y CEO de Unite the People le dice a TMZ que el niño de 6 años pudo visitar a su papá 2 fines de semana seguidos en la Institución Correccional de California Tehachapi, donde el rapero lleva menos de 4 meses de su sentencia de 10 años por dispararle a Meg Thee Stallion en el pie.

Nos dicen que un miembro de la familia trajo al pequeño a la prisión y no tuvieron que hablar a través de un vidrio, de hecho, llegaron a sentarse en una mesa y a pasar unas 4 y 5 horas juntos, tanto el sábado como el domingo.

Tory y su hijo jugaron juegos de mesa, dibujaron y comieron de la máquina expendedora.

Tory estaba feliz de abrazar a su hijo, especialmente porque no lo había podido ver para las fiestas de fin año, aunque se comunican con frecuencia.

Ustedes recordarán que Tory llevó varias veces a Kai al tribunal durante su juicio por disparos en 2022.

Tory fue condenado en agosto de 2023. Lo declararon culpable de los 3 cargos en su contra: negligencia en la descarga de un arma de fuego, asalto con un arma de fuego semiautomática y llevar un arma de fuego cargada y no registrada.

Donald Trump just got a cosign on his upstanding character -- but he received it from none other than a notorious mobster in Sammy the Bull ... and yet, he's still pretty thankful.

The ex-Prez sent a shoutout to the former Gambino crime family underboss on Truth Social -- reacting to a clip of an interview Sammy recently did on VladTV where he discussed once trying to "get to" DT back in the day ... when he was just a big-time developer in NYC.

As Sammy explains, he was able to press a lot of real estate dudes in the game during that time and have his way with them ... but, apparently, Donny himself wasn't having it.

STB goes so far as to say that despite repeated attempts to get into business with Trump -- and getting rebuffed at each stop -- he decided Don was "legitimate" and moved on. It's certainly an interesting anecdote, but Trump loved the "praise" ... and made it known online.

Trump wrote in response, "Thank you to Sammy the Bull. I hope Judges Engoron & Kaplan see this. We need fairness, strength and honesty in our New York Courts. We don’t have it now!" The robes he's referring to here are the ones overseeing a couple of his cases at the moment, BTW ... he seems to think they need to take a cue from Sam on morality.

1. Of course, the backdrop to this is Trump being in court on a number of different fronts as we head toward the '24 election. He's being prosecuted criminally, and being sued civilly too.

NY's Attorney General, Letitia James, for example claims DT is totally corrupt and a very shady business guy ... something she and her team have been trying to prove in court.

Donald Trump acaba de recibir un espaldarazo de su íntegro carácter, lo recibió de nada menos que un notorio mafioso, Sammy the Bull, y aun así está muy agradecido.

El ex presidente le envió un saludo al ex jefe de la familia criminal Gambino en Truth Social, como reacción a una reciente entrevista de Sammy en VladTV donde habló de cómo intentó contactarse con Donald Trump en su momento, cuando era solo un gran promotor en Nueva York.

Como Sammy explica, él fue capaz de presionar a un montón de tipos en el juego de los bienes raíces en ese entonces y pudo negociar con ellos, pero, al parecer, con el propio Donny no pudo conseguirlo.

STB  fue tan lejos como para decir que a pesar de sus repetidos intentos por hacer negocios con Trump -y ser rechazado en cada intento- decidió que Don era "legítimo" y siguió adelante. Es sin duda una anécdota interesante y a Trump le encantó el "elogio", tanto que lo hizo saber en línea.

En respuesta, Trump escribió: "Gracias a Sammy The Bull. Espero que los jueces Engoron y Kaplan vean esto. Necesitamos justicia, fuerza y honestidad en nuestros tribunales de Nueva York. Ahora no la tenemos". Los jueces a los que se refiere son los que están supervisando algunos de sus casos en este momento. Por cierto, parece pensar que deben seguir el ejemplo de Sam en cuanto a moralidad.

Por supuesto, el telón de fondo de todo esto es que Trump está en la corte por distintos frentes a medida que nos dirigimos hacia las elecciones 2024. Está siendo procesado penalmente y también demandado civilmente.

El fiscal general de Nueva York, Letitia James, por ejemplo, afirma que Donald Trump es totalmente corrupto y un hombre de negocios muy sombrío, algo que ella y su equipo han estado tratando de demostrar en los tribunales.

Sam Haskell Jr. is officially denying culpability in his triple murder case this week -- and the guy continues to go shirtless before a judge ... this as officials have fears of self-harm.

The murder suspect had an appearance in court Friday in Los Angeles, where he and his lawyers officially entered not guilty pleas to the 3 counts of murder Haskell is facing. Also of note ... the fact he was trotted out in front of everybody with his bare chest exposed again.

Remember, he was rocking the same sorta look when he first appeared in court last month ... something correctional officers relegated him to because of what they said were suicidal thoughts he was expressing.

Now, more than a month later of his being in custody ... he's still shirtless, something his lawyers griped about Friday -- claiming their client has not indicated he intends self-harm upon himself. Despite this, hizzoner denied Sam a shirt ... offering a self-harm vest instead.

Doesn't sound like Sam took the judge up on that ... and now, he's due back in court next month. It's unclear what exactly he's wearing behind bars, but when he's appeared in court ... he's been shirtless both times.

Remember, prosecutors allege Sam killed his wife, Mei, as well as her parents Yanxiang and Gaoshan. TMZ obtained surveillance video that appeared to show Haskell dumping something off at a dumpster shortly before he was arrested.

He remains in custody without bail.

Gary Busey has that dog in him ... as in, he's pissing in public without a care in the world.

The veteran eccentric actor was spotted pulling down his sweatpants and relieving himself Thursday out in Malibu ... urinating on a bush along a wall near a newsstand, and certainly not trying to keep it low-key. Unclear where exactly he's at -- looks like a lot of some sort.

Gary apparently felt a tingle below the belt and had no other choice but to rock a whizz at that instant ... 'cause that's exactly what he did. He even looked around a bit, but there was no shame in his game -- seriously, just look at that impish smile he's got on here.

The pee-pee seen around the world will only add to Gary's many memorable Malibu moments ... the 79-year-old is developing a bit of a reputation of late as a bit of a wild man around those parts.

Remember ... back in September, Gary was accused of a hit-and-run. A woman claimed he hit her car in a Malibu parking lot and she chased him down only for Gary to blow her off and drive away.

Gary didn't face any charges for the car incident ... and it will be interesting to see if there are any consequences for this very public bathroom break. Feels like if no one caught him in the act right then and there, he might be fine in this instance. Still ... yeesh 😬.

Mariska Hargitay revealed this week that she's a survivor of sexual assault -- something a number of orgs advocating on behalf of victims are singing her praises over, for good reason.

The actress penned a gut-wrenching piece for People this week detailing her experience -- which detailed what she says was an outright rape committed by someone she considered a friend in her 30s. She doesn't specify when it happened, but she does remember it vividly.

She says, "I tried all the ways I knew to get out of it. I tried to make jokes, to be charming, to set a boundary, to reason, to say no. He grabbed me by the arms and held me down. I was terrified. I didn’t want it to escalate to violence. I now know it was already sexual violence, but I was afraid he would become physically violent. I went into freeze mode, a common trauma response when there is no option to escape. I checked out of my body."

Afterward, Mariska says she erased this incident from her narrative and tried forgetting it -- although, this issue is still very clearly near and dear to her heart ... evidenced in the fact that she founded the Joyful Heart Foundation, a nonprofit aimed at helping SA survivors.

Of course, there's also the fact she's been playing Det. Olivia Benson on 'Law & Order: SVU' for years now ... and her character is constantly out to catch predators of this nature as well.

Mariska has been getting praised for sharing her experience, but there are some advocacy groups in this space that wanna show her more love and appreciation ... including the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network and the New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

Reps for all 4 orgs tell TMZ that Mariska coming forward continues to strip away the stigma of victims feeling afraid or ashamed to come forward and speak their truth ... noting what she's doing here is helpful to countless other people out there in the world.

Scott Berkowitz of RAINN says, "Mariska Hargitay has already done so much for survivors of sexual violence through her career and her foundation. To now share her personal story is another brave and important act, and we stand by her and all survivors who take this step."

All the groups here tell us just about the same thing -- that Mariska's recounting echoes so much of what victims go through collectively ... and that talking about it encourages others to do the same. With someone as high-profile as her speaking out, it helps pave the way.

Mariska Hargitay ha revelado esta semana que ha sobrevivido a una agresión sexual, algo por lo que varias organizaciones de defensa de las víctimas la alaban, y con razón.

La actriz escribió esta semana un desgarrador artículo para People en el que detalla su experiencia: lo que ella dice que fue una violación cometida por alguien a quien consideraba un amigo a los 30 años. No especifica cuándo ocurrió, pero lo recuerda vívidamente.

Ella dice: "Traté de todas las maneras posibles de salir de ahí. Intenté hacer bromas, ser encantadora, poner un límite, razonar, decir que no. Me agarró por los brazos y me sujetó. Estaba aterrorizada. No quería que llegara a la violencia. Ahora sé que ya era violencia sexual, pero temía que se volviera violento físicamente. Entré en modo de congelación, una respuesta traumática habitual cuando no hay opción de escapar. Salí de mi cuerpo".

Después, Mariska dice que borró este incidente de su narrativa y trató de olvidarlo, aunque este tema sigue siendo algo muy importante para ella... evidenciado que ella fundó la Fundación Joyful Heart, una organización sin fines de lucro destinada a ayudar a los sobrevivientes de asalto sexual.

Por supuesto, también está el hecho de que ella ha estado interpretando a Olivia Benson en 'Law & Order: SVU' desde hace años y su personaje también está constantemente tratando de atrapar a los depredadores de esta naturaleza.

Mariska ha sido elogiada por compartir su experiencia, pero hay algunos grupos de defensa en este espacio que quieren sumarse, incluyendo el Centro Nacional de Recursos contra la Violencia Sexual, la Alianza de la Ciudad de Nueva York contra el Asalto Sexual, la Red Nacional de Violación, Abuso e Incesto y la Coalición del Estado de Nueva York contra el Asalto Sexual.

Representantes de las 4 organizaciones le dicen a TMZ que Mariska sigue despojando el estigma de las víctimas que sienten miedo o vergüenza de presentarse y decir su verdad.

Scott Berkowitz de RAINN dice: "Mariska Hargitay ha hecho mucho por los supervivientes de la violencia sexual a través de su carrera y su fundación. Compartir ahora su historia personal es otro acto valiente e importante y la apoyamos a ella y a todas las supervivientes que dan este paso".

Todos los grupos nos dicen lo mismo, que el relato de Mariska se hace eco de lo que las víctimas sufren colectivamente y que hablar de ello anima a otros a hacer lo mismo. Que alguien de tan alto nivel como ella hable, ayuda a allanar el camino.

Gary Busey fue encontrado orinando en público sin una preocupación en el mundo.

El veterano actor fue visto bajándose los pantalones y haciendo sus necesidades el jueves en Malibu, orinando en un arbusto a lo largo de una pared cerca de un quiosco de prensa.

Gary aparentemente sintió un cosquilleo por debajo del cinturón y solo tenía que hacer pis en ese instante... aunque parece que le causó gracia, basta con ver esa sonrisa pícara.

Todo el mundo pudo ver el pis y esto se sumará a los momentos memorables de Gary, el hombre de 79 años de edad está desarrollando una reputación de hombre salvaje últimamente.

Recordemos que en septiembre Gary fue acusado de un atropello con fuga. Una mujer afirmó que él golpeó su carro en un estacionamiento de Malibu y ella lo persiguió solo para Gary se fuera conduciendo.

Gary no se enfrentó a ningún cargo penal por el incidente del carro y será interesante ver si hay alguna consecuencia por esta ida al baño tan pública. Da la sensación de que si nadie lo atrapó en el acto, podría salir de esta.😬

Young Thug's YSL RICO trial continues to provide unintentional entertainment ... today's edition introduced an unlikely name into the mix -- LeBron James!!!

On Thursday, YSL co-founder Trontavious "Tick" Stephens took the stand yet again when he was quizzed about LBJ's potential ties to the YSL -- due to the fact the NBA's scoring leader occasionally doing the "wipe your nose" hand sign with teammates and calling them "slime" as a term of endearment.

Prosecutors argue the WYN gesture is code for offing a rival in the streets and "slime" is also a gang-related term and pressured Tick to cough up what he knew about LBJ and YSL ... which wasn't much.

Tick admitted he's seen LBJ pull off different handshakes with his team -- but his mind seemed to slip into the Twilight Zone on the other questions .. namely, he couldn't remember.

The case has been bridged on potentially having YT potentially having crimes in his rap lyrics and the court played his and Rich Homie Quan's 2014 hit "Lifestyle" for everyone to analyze.

We're not sure what streaming the party track accomplished ... Thug, Yak Gotti and others remained emotionless as the platinum smash blared in the courtroom but it looked like the attorneys were trying hard not to catch a vibe.

Darnell 'SuperChef' Ferguson's estranged wife is looking to protect herself after he allegedly attacked her ... because we've learned she filed a TRO against him.

According to new docs, obtained by TMZ, Tatahda Ferguson filed in Lousiville, Kentucky Monday -- the day before Darnell was arrested -- seeking protection for her and their 3 kids.

She's also asking for Darnell to stay away from her work, home, and their kids' school ... and Tatahda is seeking temporary custody and child support.

In the docs, Tatahda claims Darnell came into her home without her permission on January 2 while she "had a guy friend sleeping with me." She says the guy took off when Darnell arrived.

She claims Darnell was upset that she wasn't responding to his calls, as well as the man sleeping with her, and got irate ... allegedly breaking her door and punching a hole in her wall before choking her out.

Tatahda says Darnell ripped her shorts off and demanded to see her private parts, "because I was his and no one else's."

As we reported, Darnell pleaded not guilty in court to the criminal charges related to this alleged incident, and his bond was set at $10k. Records show he posted bail Wednesday and was released.

Un editor de Hollywood está recibiendo malas noticias profesionalmente, debido a su reciente detención por poner en peligro a unos niños. A pesar de la especulación que va a seguir trabajando en un gran espectáculo de Amazon Prime... TMZ puede confirmar que está fuera.

Christopher Charkowski —de 39 años— fue detenido en el condado de Los Ángeles la semana pasada por un cargo de delito grave de crueldad intencional a un niño causando posibles lesiones o la muerte, y un video está circulando en línea que supuestamente lo muestra abusando del niño dentro de una casa.

Fuentes policiales nos dicen que este video de vigilancia que ha estado haciendo rondando por las redes sociales, se le ha presentado a las autoridades como parte de su investigación del caso. Los registros judiciales indican que el presunto delito se cometió en junio de 2022.

El caso fue archivado en noviembre, pero Charkowski no fue detenido y fichado por la policía hasta el 4 de enero. Lo que se muestra en este video es inquietante, por decir lo menos, y podría ser una pieza clave de las pruebas a medida que avanza este caso.

En el video se ve a un hombre perdiendo la cabeza y yendo a por lo que parece ser un niño pequeño. Se le ve poner las manos encima del niño, estrangularlo y posiblemente incluso darle algún puñetazo.

No está claro cuál es la relación entre el adulto y el niño, pero los oficiales tienen motivos suficientes para creer que es Charkowski quien aparece en el video.

Por cierto, ha sido puesto en libertad bajo fianza y las fechas para la corte están programadas.

Ahora, en cuanto a quién es Charkowski en el mundo del espectáculo, ha trabajado en post-producción para un montón de grandes programas de televisión. Más recientemente, editó el video de "Jury Duty", que dio de que hablar de la ciudad el año pasado, e incluso fue nominado en los Globos de Oro del pasado fin de semana.

Charkowski aparece como parte del departamento editorial de esa serie, y luego de que este video saliera a la luz, la gente ha estado clamando para que Amazon lo deje caer lo antes posible. Una fuente directa le dice a TMZ que Charkowski ya no está afiliado con el estudio.

Nos dicen que su papel en "Jury Duty" —que se extendió por 8 episodios— vino y se fue una vez que terminó la producción hace casi un año. Nuestras fuentes dicen que era un contratista externo al show, no un empleado permanente de Amazon/Freevee.

Desde entonces, nuestras fuentes dicen que no ha sido empleado de Amazon en absoluto y es seguro decir que no va a volver.

Otro espectáculo en el que ha trabajado durante mucho tiempo es Bravo "Below Deck Mediterranean", pero una fuente señala que no ha estado con ellos desde hace unos dos años.

A prominent Hollywood editor is getting the cold shoulder, professionally, due to his recent arrest for child endangerment -- and despite speculation he'll continue working on a big-time Amazon Prime show ... TMZ can confirm he's out.

Thirty-nine-year-old Christopher Charkowski was arrested in L.A. County last week on a felony charge of willful cruelty to a child causing possible possible injury or death -- and a video is circulating online allegedly showing him brutalizing a kid inside of a house.

Law enforcement sources tell us this clip -- home surveillance footage that's been making the rounds on social media -- has been submitted to authorities as part of their investigation of the case. Court records list the date of the alleged offense as June 2022.

The case was filed back in November, but Charkowski wasn't hauled in and booked by law enforcement until Jan. 4. What's depicted in this video is disturbing, to say the least, and could be a key piece of evidence as this case proceeds.

In the clip, you see a man losing his mind and going after what appears to be a little boy. You can see him putting his hands on the kid, throttling him and possibly even throwing some punches.

It's unclear what the relation might be between the adult and child here, but on its face, it appears law enforcement had enough reason to believe it's Charkowski in the video.

BTW, he's been released on bail -- and future court dates are scheduled.

Now, as far as who Charkowski is in showbiz ... he's worked in post-production for a lot of big TV shows. Most recently, he edited video for "Jury Duty," which was the talk of the town last year, and was even nominated at last weekend's Golden Globes.

Charkowski is listed as part of the editorial department for that series -- and after this video got out, people have been clamoring for Amazon to drop him ASAP. Welp, a source with direct knowledge tells TMZ that Charkowski is no longer affiliated with the studio.

We're told his role on "Jury Duty" -- which spanned 8 episodes -- came and went once they wrapped production nearly a year ago, and our sources say he was an outside contractor on the show, not a permanent employee of Amazon/Freevee.

Since then, our sources say he hasn't been employed at Amazon whatsoever -- and safe to say ... he won't be back.

Another show he's worked on for a long time is Bravo's "Below Deck Mediterranean," but a production source points out to TMZ .... he hasn't been with them for about 2 years now.

11:33 AM PT -- La policía de Silt dice que no encontraron pruebas creíbles de violencia doméstica contra la diputada Boebert en su investigación sobre el altercado del sábado en Miner's Claim, Colorado.

El departamento dio a conocer los resultados de sus hallazgos el miércoles y básicamente están señalando a Jayson, diciendo que Lauren fue cooperativa y servicial esa noche, mientras que él estaba "altamente intoxicado, gritandole a los oficiales y no cooperó con la investigación".

Dicen que están cerrando el asunto por falta de pruebas de violencia doméstica contra Lauren y van a dejar que la oficina del Fiscal se haga cargo de todo lo demás que se le acusa a Jayson.

TMZ ha obtenido las órdenes de detención emitidas contra el ex marido de Lauren Boebert, las cuales describen dos incidentes diferentes que pintan a Jayson como alguien fuera de control.

En los documentos del altercado del sábado por la noche entre la congresista y su ex —obtenido por TMZ— los oficiales dicen que recibieron una llamada denunciando violencia doméstica, solo para recibir otra llamada de Boebert... en el despacho destacaron algunas partes como: "Acabo de tocar tu nariz" y Jayson gritando: "Ella me dio un puñetazo en la cara".

Finalmente, cuando los oficiales llegaron, dicen que se encontraron con Lauren y Jayson en el exterior del restaurante Miner's Claim, donde determinaron que Lauren y Jayson habían llegado allí para arreglar las cosas y discutir el futuro de su relación. Boebert es citado en los documentos diciendo que estaban tratando de llegar a buenos términos, pero las cosas se pusieron feas.

Por la razón que sea, los policías dicen que las cosas parecen haberse puesto físicas. Jayson estaba reclamando que Lauren le dio un puñetazo en la cara, Lauren dijo que simplemente lo tocó con el dedo. Los policías dicen que Jayson comenzó a actuar bulliciosamente y se negó a permanecer quieto y seguir las órdenes, supuestamente exigiendo más bebida y negándose a abandonar el lugar cuando el manager se lo exigió.

Después de un montón de idas y venidas, los documentos dicen Jayson finalmente tuvo que ser "escoltado físicamente fuera del lugar" e incluso trató de detener a los oficiales "agarrando el marco de la puerta." Esa noche no fue detenido por lo sucedido, ni tampoco Lauren. Una orden de detención por separado fue emitida por otro presunto incidente.

La Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Garfield dice que recibieron una llamada del hijo de Luren y Jason de 18 años de edad —Tyler— para informar de algún tipo de altercado físico relacionado con su padre.

En pocas palabras, Tyler alegó que Jayson estaba en su casa familiar y se enojó porque Tyler tenía a su bebé durmiendo en un cesto de la ropa con la ropa en ella, esto supuestamente estalló en una pelea entre padre e hijo, con Tyler diciendo que Jayson metió su pulgar en la boca.

Tyler también afirma que Jayson agarró un rifle y Tyler finalmente llamó a su madre —Lauren— quien le dijo que llamara al 911. Cuando Tyler les dijo lo que pasó, los oficiales fueron capaces de obtener una orden de arresto contra Jayson por uso prohibido de un arma, acoso y asalto en tercer grado.

Hemos llegado a la oficina de Boebert para hacer comentarios, pero hasta ahora no hay respuesta.

11:33 AM PT -- Silt PD is now saying they found no credible evidence of DV against Rep. Lauren Boebert in their investigation of Saturday's altercation at Miner's Claim in Colorado.

The department released the results of their findings Wednesday, and are basically pointing the finger at Jayson here -- saying Lauren was cooperative and helpful that night, whereas they claim Jayson was "highly intoxicated, yelling at officers, and was uncooperative with the investigation."

They say due to the lack of evidence of domestic violence against Lauren, they're closing the matter ... and letting the D.A.'s office deal with Jayson on everything else he's accused of.

TMZ has obtained the arrest warrants issued for Lauren Boebert's ex-husband -- describing two different alleged incidents over the course of a few days that paint Jayson as pretty out of control ... at least according to law enforcement.

First, in the docs pertaining to Saturday evening's altercation between the Congresswoman and her ex -- obtained by TMZ -- cops say they got a call for potential DV, only to then get another call from Boebert herself ... which dispatch says featured LB saying "I just touched your nose" and Jayson yelling, "She punched me in the face."

Eventually when officers arrived, they say they ran into Lauren and Jayson on the outside the Miner's Claim restaurant in Silt, Co -- where they determined Lauren and Jayson had come there to hash things out and discuss the future of their relationship. Boebert is quoted in the docs as saying they were trying to get on good terms, but things got ugly.

For whatever reason, cops say things appear to have gotten physical -- Jayson was claiming Lauren punched him in the face, Lauren said it was nothing but a touch with her finger. As they were trying to go back and forth and collect info from them and witnesses, cops say Jayson started acting boisterously and refused to stay put and follow commands -- allegedly demanding more booze and refusing to leave the joint when he was asked by management.

After a lot of back and forth, the docs say Jayson had to eventually be "physically escorted off the premise" and even tried to stop officers "by grabbing the door frame." He was not arrested that evening over whatever happened, and neither was Lauren. Fast-forward to Tuesday, and a separate arrest warrant was issued over another alleged incident.

The Garfield County Sheriff's Office says they got a call from Lauren and Jayson's 18-year-old son, Tyler, to report some kind of physical altercation Tyler claims occurred with his dad.

Long story short, Tyler alleged that Jayson was at their family home and got pissed because Tyler had his baby sleeping in a laundry basket with clothes in it, which allegedly erupted into a brawl between father and son, with Tyler saying Jayson stuck his thumb in his mouth.

Tyler also claims Jayson grabbed a rifle at one point, and Tyler eventually called his mom, Lauren, who told him to call 911 ... and when Tyler told them what happened, officers were able to get an arrest warrant for Jayson for prohibited use of a weapon, harassment, and assault in the third degree.

We've reached out to Boebert's office for comment ... so far, no word back.

Ecuador has been thrust into utter chaos after a major drug lord escaped from prison over the weekend -- spurring cartel gang members to wreak havoc all throughout the country.

Cities like Guayaquil and others are being subjected to stickups and raids on the behalf of thugs who are running amok in the streets ... storming TV stations, holding people hostage at gunpoint, and in many cases -- outright executions of law enforcement officials.

The videos making the rounds online right now are absolutely stunning in the worst possible way -- these cartel killers are recording themselves indiscriminately opening fire in public.

Like we said ... it's bedlam of the highest degree, and the disturbing images surfacing are causing alarm in the international community. Ecuador's government has already issued a state of emergency, and military personnel has been deployed to get a handle on things.

There've been countless arrests -- but it's unclear if this attempted crackdown will be effective ... Ecuador has been at the center of corruption allegations for years, so it remains to be seen if their criminal justice system can keep things in check there.

As far as what sparked all this ... it appears to be stemming from a brash prison break for a guy named Adolfo 'Fito' Macias -- who busted out on Sunday, and who leads Los Choneros.

Now, he and his goons are a putting on a show of force ... and being met with pushback not just from law enforcement, but from citizens as well -- many of whom are taking up arms.

Ecuador se ha sumido en el caos absoluto después de que un importante capo de la droga escapara de la cárcel durante el fin de semana, lo que ha llevado a los miembros de las bandas del cártel a sembrar el caos por todo el país.

Ciudades como Guayaquil y otras están siendo objeto de asaltos y redadas en nombre de los matones que están corriendo fuera de control por las calles. Han asaltado estaciones de televisión, tomado personas como rehenes a punta de pistola, y en muchos casos, ejecutado directamente a los funcionarios encargados de hacer cumplir la ley.

Los videos que están circulando en línea en este momento son absolutamente impresionantes y de la peor forma posible. Estos asesinos del cártel se están grabando indiscriminadamente mientras abren fuego en público.

Como decíamos, es un caos del más alto grado y las perturbadoras imágenes están causando alarma en la comunidad internacional. El gobierno de Ecuador ya ha decretado el estado de emergencia y se ha desplegado personal militar para controlar la situación.

Ha habido innumerables detenciones, pero no está claro si este intento de represión será eficaz. Ecuador ha estado en el centro de acusaciones de corrupción durante años, por lo que está por verse si su sistema de justicia penal puede mantener las cosas bajo control.

En cuanto a lo que provocó todo esto, parece que se deriva de la fuga de la cárcel de un tipo llamado Adolfo 'Fito' Macías, que escapó el domingo y lidera a Los Choneros.

Ahora, él y sus matones se enfrentan al repudio no solo de las fuerzas del orden, sino de los ciudadanos, muchos de los cuales están tomando las armas.