By: La Tabla / Data Journalism Platform – 22 OCT 2025
Andrés Fernando Tufiño Chila, the Ecuadorian survivor of the narco-submarine attacked by U.S. forces in the Caribbean, wasn’t just serving a narcotics trafficking sentence in the United States. In April 2023, while incarcerated in a federal prison in California, he shared a handwritten letter on his Facebook profile addressed to his children, friends, and loved ones.
In the heartfelt message, Tufiño sent “big hugs and kisses” to his children, promised that he would soon be a free man, and expressed gratitude to those who supported him throughout his three-year incarceration. The legal proceedings that led to his conviction in December 2021 began in September 2020.
To his friends who dreamed of migrating to the United States, he urged them to listen to their parents and children first, and “under no circumstances should they abandon them.” The letter concluded with a striking statement:
🗣️ “There, I await you with a cell, a broom, and a mop.”
This intimate testimony aligns with the recent judicial findings reported by La Tabla: Tufiño was sentenced to 60 months in prison along with five years of supervised release for conspiring to transport cocaine in a vessel under U.S. jurisdiction.
His sentence was meant to last until December 2026. However, in October 2025, Tufiño reemerged in Ecuador after surviving a military operation that resulted in two fatalities. He was almost instantly repatriated, with no public information available regarding how he managed to be released early or if any early deportation measures were applied.
The 2023 letter not only affirms that he was indeed still imprisoned at that time, but it also portrays a clear picture of his emotional and legal condition. Now, two years ahead of his expected release date, the case remains open in terms of transparency and international judicial cooperation.
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