Suspect arrested in shooting of Paraguayan soccer star
By IANSWednesday, January 19, 2011
Mexico City, Jan 20 (IANS/EFE) A suspect has been arrested in connection with the attempted murder of Paraguayan soccer player Salvador Cabaas, officials said.
Reputed drug trafficker Jose Jorge Balderas Garza was detained in Mexico City, said Ramon Pequeo, head of the federal police’s anti-narcotics division.
Garza, wanted in Mexico for his alleged ties with notorious US-born drug kingpin Edgar Valdez Villarreal - alias “La Barbie” - later told police that his bodyguard was the one who shot the football player in the head.
He said the Jan 25, 2010, shooting at a Mexico City bar occurred when he entered the restroom and came across Cabaas, who became upset when he asked permission to use the toilet.
He told police Cabaas “reacted with verbal and physical aggression”, at which Garza’s bodyguard, Jose Francisco Barreto Garcia, entered the restroom and fired at Cabaas’ head.
Six other suspects were also detained. Police confiscated false IDs from the suspects, several packets of cocaine, five rifles, six handguns and a machine gun, 304 rounds of ammunition, two grenades, six bulletproof vests, about $106,000 worth of Mexican and US currency and two vehicles.
Cabaas, 30, one of South America’s top strikers in recent years, was the leading goal scorer in the 2007 and 2008 Copa Libertadores tournaments and in Mexican league in 2006.
–IANS/EFE
