Good question. You want me to keep it real, right?
I remember a few years back someone robbed me while in Guayaquil, I called the police, and they never showed up…and from what the locals told me, this isn’t that strange.
The good news is that the situation has improved over the last few years with the Correa administration. In fact, they have hired SO many police it seems to some that Ecuador is trying to employ their entire male population as policemen.
President Correa has also raised the salaries of the police, gotten them better equipment and cleaned out a lot of the corruption.
The police won’t bother you in the street or ask to see your passport, and can help you in a sticky situation.
In general, the situation has improved over the last few years by leaps and bounds but is not perfect.
To answer the question, can you trust the local police in Ecuador, I would say …”More than a few years ago but still not quite as much as you could maybe in the US (but I’m not Rodney King)”.
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