Bangladesh, Nov. 17 -- Ecuadors long and grueling battle against spiraling cartel violence reached a watershed moment this week when Spanish authorities, working in close coordination with Quito, arrested Wilmer Geovanny Chavarría Barré-better known as “Pipo”-the elusive and feared leader of the criminal group Los Lobos. President Daniel Noboa announced the capture on November 16, calling it “a historic blow to the security of Ecuador” and one of the most significant breakthroughs in the countrys fight against transnational organized crime.

For a nation traumatized by years of escalating bloodshed, prison massacres, political assassinations, and the domination of drug-trafficking gangs, the arrest of Cha...