Suspect arrested in shooting of Paraguayan soccer star
January 20th, 2011 - 9:10 am ICT by IANSMexico City, Jan 20 (IANS/EFE) A suspect has been arrested in connection with the attempted murder of Paraguayan soccer player Salvador Cabanas, officials said.Reputed drug trafficker Jose Jorge Balderas Garza was detained in Mexico City, said Ramon Pequeno, 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 Cabanas, who became upset when he asked permission to use the toilet.
He told police Cabanas “reacted with verbal and physical aggression”, at which Garza’s bodyguard, Jose Francisco Barreto Garcia, entered the restroom and fired at Cabanas’ 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.
Cabanas, 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
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Tags: attempted murder, balderas, bodyguard, bulletproof vests, drug kingpin, drug trafficker, edgar valdez villarreal, false ids, federal police, football player, goal scorer, handguns, machine gun, mexico city, paraguayan soccer player, physical aggression, restroom, salvador cabanas, soccer star, strikers