Latin American football is known for its passions, but sometimes they go beyond the bounds of reason. Edgar Paez, president of FC Tigres, was recently killed in Colombia. Team representatives reported this on social networks.
How was the president of a football club killed?
It is reported that the criminals opened fire when Paes was returning home in his car after Tigres’s lost match against Atlético de Cali, which ended with a score of 2:3. Tigres plays in the second strongest division and is in penultimate place.
According to the police, the attack took place near the Metropolitano de Techo stadium — two criminals rode up on a white motorcycle. Paez suffered gunshot wounds to the chest, neck and head. He was urgently hospitalized, but the doctors could not help — the 63-year-old functionary died in the hospital.
It is noted that Paes had a daughter in the car with him. Information about her condition is not specified. The incident was caught on CCTV and police are investigating.
What could be the reason for the murder?
Paes owned 49% of the club’s shares, the rest was distributed among his family and friends. According to some versions, the murder could be related to sports betting.
Paez previously worked as a detective and served as an investigator in the Colombian Attorney General’s Office. The newspaper El Espectador claims that several years ago he was sentenced to seven months in prison for causing bodily harm by negligence. This is another alleged motive for the murder.
Almost 30 years ago, a national football player was killed in Colombia
Unfortunately, this is not the first high-profile crime in Colombia that has occurred in the world of football. In 1994, the team was considered one of the shadow favorites of the World Cup, but was eliminated due to an own goal by defender Andres Escobar.
A bright career awaited him: before the World Cup, Escobar was preparing to move to Milan, but did not have time. They say that the mafia in Colombia was engaged in betting and the unexpected relegation of the national team hit them hard in their pockets. Escobar was shot 10 days after the fatal match in his hometown of Medellin.
The bodyguard of the Gallion brothers, associated with the drug mafia, was accused of murder. While shooting at Andres Escobar, he repeated the same words: “Thank you for that own goal.”
Escobar’s death shocked the world and remains one of the worst tragedies in the history of football. The murder of the Tigres president is not so resonant, but it is another shocking incident that occurred in Colombia.