Doctor murdered and merchant shot dead in Trinidad and San Matías mobilise police
A doctor was found bound and dead in Trinidad; a merchant was shot dead in San Matías. Police are investigating robbery and contract killing.
Two murders in Beni and Santa Cruz trigger investigations into robbery and score-settling
Two murders recorded in Trinidad, capital of the department of Beni, and in San Matías, a border municipality of Santa Cruz, mobilised police investigators and prosecutors yesterday, according to El Deber. The victims are otorhinolaryngologist doctor César Antonio Reyes Parada and meat merchant Ronald Kuhn Justiniano.
A third person involved, doctor Julio Alfred Cassab, survived the attack in Trinidad and was transferred to Germán Busch hospital to receive specialist care.
Doctor found bound and dead in Trinidad
At 6:00 in the morning, police reported the discovery of Reyes Parada's body in a house located on San Antonio and Agustín Palacios streets in the capital of Beni. The professional had served as director of the Departmental Health Service (Sedes) of Beni. He was found on the floor with his hands tied and his mouth obstructed with a towel secured with adhesive tape.
"We found him tied up, gagged, with rags in his mouth," recounted Camilo Meneses, head of the volunteer firefighters who responded. Cassab, a doctor originally from La Paz, was also bound hand and foot in the same house, although he remained conscious when the rescue workers arrived.
A team from the Special Force to Combat Crime (Felcc) retrieved the body and collected evidence. The autopsy determined that Reyes Parada died from mechanical asphyxiation and had injuries caused by blows.
Investigators verified the disappearance of a safe that, according to family members, the doctor kept in his bedroom. The main hypothesis points to aggravated robbery followed by murder. The departmental commander of Beni, Colonel Víctor Hugo Medina, reported that sweeping operations were deployed across different parts of the department to identify those responsible.
Departmental prosecutor Orlando Aramayo indicated that there are preliminary indications of possible foreign involvement: "Apparently these are foreign individuals who perpetrated this criminal act."
Merchant shot dead with at least 15 gunshot wounds in San Matías
Around midday, Ronald Kuhn Justiniano was shot dead in San Matías, a municipality bordering Brazil. Armed men travelling in a vehicle intercepted him near a gas distribution point and fled after the attack. Police reported at least 15 bullet impacts. Forensic evaluation attributed death to trauma and haemorrhage from multiple gunshot wounds.
Police reports indicate that Kuhn had survived a previous attack in which Rosauro Maturana, known as "Negro Maturana", was killed. It has not been confirmed that both incidents are linked. The main hypothesis points to a possible score-settling related to drug trafficking networks, and investigators are also looking into whether the attackers were of Brazilian nationality. Until the close of reporting, none of these versions had been verified through the identification of those responsible.
Border marked by criminal violence
San Matías was the epicentre of violence attributed to the criminal groups PCC and Comando Vermelho during June and July. Previous incidents include a triple murder in July and the subsequent death of a police officer investigating that case.
The crimes occur as authorities debate measures in response to the wave of violence related to drug trafficking and characterised by contract killings in the department of Santa Cruz.
Source: El Deber