Guatemalan Lawmaker and Three Police Officers Killed in Armed Attack in Zacapa

Congressman Julio César Portillo Paz, a Guatemala lawmaker killed in an armed attack in the eastern department of Zacapa on Friday, was among four people who died in the attack, including three police officers who were escorting him.

Portillo, who represented Zacapa in Guatemala’s Congress, was attacked in the town of Río Hondo and taken to hospital with serious injuries. His death was later confirmed by his party, the National Unity of Hope (UNE).

FAKTA

• Who was killed: Congressman Julio César Portillo Paz and three National Civil Police officers.
• Where: Río Hondo, in the eastern department of Zacapa, Guatemala.
• When: Friday, 6 November 2026. Portillo died in hospital after the attack; his death was confirmed late on Friday.
• What officials say: President Bernardo Arévalo condemned the attack and ordered security forces to help prosecutors identify those responsible.
• What is not known: The authorities have not disclosed a motive or identified any suspects.

Guatemala lawmaker killed in Río Hondo

Portillo was in Río Hondo, a town in Zacapa known for drug trafficking activity, when gunmen attacked. The three officers killed in the attack were members of the National Civil Police. According to the Interior Ministry, the officers died while preventing a direct attack on the lawmaker.

Portillo was taken to hospital with serious injuries after the shooting. His death was later confirmed by the UNE. Guatemala’s Congress said in a post on X late on Friday that it mourned “the tragic passing of Congressman Julio Cesar Portillo Paz, representative of the Zacapa district”.

Portillo won his seat in 2023 for the opposition party Cabal and later switched to the National Unity of Hope, the party led by former First Lady Sandra Torres.

President condemns the killings

President Bernardo Arévalo said the three police officers had died in the line of duty and instructed security forces to cooperate with prosecutors investigating the killings.

“We will not allow criminal violence to prevail over the lives and safety of Guatemalans,” Arévalo said in a post on X.

A region shaped by drug trafficking

Zacapa, in eastern Guatemala, is known for drug trafficking activity. The Lorenzana family cartel controls the drug trade in the department and has links to Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel.

The authorities have not said whether the attack was linked to organised crime, and no group has claimed responsibility.

Second killing in weeks

The killing comes about three weeks after former anti-corruption prosecutor Juan Francisco Solórzano Foppa was shot dead in Guatemala City, a case that heightened concerns over organised crime’s influence and the possible return of politically motivated assassinations in Guatemala.

Authorities have not established a connection between the two attacks.

Read more on Watan News: Guatemala lawmaker killed in Zacapa attack