(MENAFN) Seven individuals lost their lives in a deadly shooting at a billiard hall in northwestern Ecuador early Sunday, according to local media reports.

The attack unfolded in the city of Santo Domingo, the capital of the province bearing the same name, when several assailants dressed in black stormed the establishment and opened fire on patrons, local media said.

Authorities swiftly sealed off the area, and preliminary findings indicate that among the dead were a retired police officer and a suspected gang figure known by the alias “Rasta.”

Situated at a strategic crossroads between the Andes and the Pacific, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas has become a hotspot for drug trafficking routes and, as a result, a flashpoint for escalating gang violence.

No arrests have been reported as of Monday morning.

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