Former Miss Venezuela, Monica Spear, shot dead in suspected roadside robbery
A former Miss Venezuela and her British-born husband were shot dead in front of their five-year-old daughter during a suspected roadside robbery that shocked the nation.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2014/01/1859.jpg
Monica Spear, a 29-year-old soap opera star, and Thomas Berry, 39, were targeted by gunmen after their car broke down on a highway in north-western Venezuela late Monday, prosecutors said in statement.
Their daughter, Maya Berry Spear, suffered a leg injury but was in a stable condition after the attack that put a spotlight on the country's soaring murder rate.
The family was on a scenic highway when their car hit a blunt object that may have been deliberately placed on the road as part of a planned armed robbery, police forensic officers said.
After pulling over, on the road between Puerto Cabello and Valencia in the state of Carabobo, Spear waved down a tow truck.
As the tow truck finished lifting the car, five armed men emerged on the road and opened fire on the family.
The terrified mother, father and child locked themselves in the car but the criminals fired multiple shots at the vehicle before leaving empty handed, police said.
Authorities are interrogating the tow truck's two operators who fled to a police station about 1.5 kilometres away. Investigators impounded the couple's car for further analysis.
Five people have been detained and are being interrogated in connection with the crime, interior minister Miguel Rodriguez said after a televised meeting with president Nicolas Maduro.
"We presume it was a robbery... but we are in the middle of an investigation," Mr Rodriguez said, vowing to use an "iron hand" to crack down on crime.
Spear, who was a quarter-finalist in the 2005 Miss Universe contest, appeared in the Miami-based Telemundo series Pasion Prohibida (Forbidden Passion) and Flor Salvaje (Savage Flower).
The dark-haired actress, who lived in the United States, was on holiday in her native Venezuela at the time of her death.
She had posted videos of the countryside and herself horse riding on Instagram in the last couple of days.
Her husband was born in Britain but had Venezuelan citizenship.
Former Miss Venezuela, Monica Spear, shot dead in suspected roadside robbery - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2014/01/1860.jpg
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
