Ecuadorian intelligence chief, close to President Noboa, dies in helicopter crash in Kenya
Ecuador’s intelligence chief, Michele Sensi-Contugi, died on Wednesday August 19 in a helicopter accident in Kenya. A total of seven people died when the plane carrying them on an excursion crashed in the center of the country, the country’s air accident investigation authority (AAID) told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Five American citizens were among the victims, according to a spokesperson for the American State Department, including the wife – who also had Ecuadorian nationality – of Mr. Sensi-Contugi. The seventh victim is the pilot of the helicopter, a Kenyan national, according to the American channel ABC News, citing a local police commander.
Ecuador’s intelligence chief, 44, was close to right-wing President Daniel Noboa, at the head of a country plunged into a serious security crisis. Appointed director of intelligence in 2024, Mr. Sensi-Contugi simultaneously served as interior minister for a few months. Before entering public service, he was a millionaire fashion businessman. He was also Mr. Noboa’s representative at state-owned companies, including the national oil company Petroecuador.
A senior manager of the Telemundo channel among the victims
His wife, Stephany Hollihan, 42, was a friend of the first lady, Lavinia Valbonesi, and a fashion designer.
“Today, Michele and Stephany left way too soon. I think of their family, especially their children and their parents”lamented, on X, the Ecuadorian Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Roberto Luque. “Today is a very sad and painful day. There are times when words are not enough to understand or explain such an unexpected loss”declared, on the same social network, X the Ecuadorian vice-president, María José Pinto, who presented her condolences.
The government declared three days of mourning for the deaths of the official and his wife. The Ecuadorian National Assembly announced that the flag at the Legislative Palace in the capital Quito would be flown at half-mast for three days.
Luis Carlos Avila was named the new interim intelligence chief, according to a decree issued Wednesday.
The American Spanish-language channel Telemundo also announced that one of its senior officials in Florida, José Alberto Suárez, had died in the accident. “We are devastated to learn the tragic news that José was killed in a helicopter crash in Kenya”regrets in a press release César Conde, president of the information group of its parent company NBCUniversal News Group.
Operations suspended until Thursday
The helicopter, an EC-130-B4, manufactured by the European group Eurocopter (now Airbus Hélicoptères), crashed at 9:13 a.m. (8:13 a.m. Paris time) near Mount Ololokwe, about 250 km as the crow flies north of Nairobi, according to the Kenyan Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
“The helicopter was carrying tourists for a panorama observation flight”explained to AFP Fredrick Kabunge, director of the AAID. The rescue teams have “discovered the device destroyed by the impact and the fire that followed”he added. AAID investigators were dispatched to the scene of the accident to investigate the causes of the accident, Mr. Kabunge said.
“Operations have been suspended until tomorrow (THURSDAY) due to the darkness and the complexity of the terrain »declared Wednesday evening to AFP, David Nkoroi, police chief of the Samburu region, site of the accident. The United States Embassy in Kenya said it was liaising with local authorities and offering consular assistance.
Mount Ololokwe, a sacred mountain of the Samburu people whose summit rises to an altitude of 2,000 meters, is a tourist hiking area. Specialized companies also offer helicopter flights.
The 1er March, six people, including an MP, died in the accident of a helicopter which crashed in western Kenya.
