By Isabela Fraga
Brazilian radio sports commentator Valério Luiz was shot and killed on the afternoon of Thursday, June 5, while leaving the building of the radio station Rádio Jornal 820 AM, where he worked, in Goiânia, reported the news portal R7.
According to UOL, the journalist had finished participating in a radio sports program and left the building in his car. An individual on a motorcycle shot at the vehicle the journalist was in at least five times. Police still cannot tell how many shots hit Valério Luiz, who died at the scene. The journalist's body was buried on the morning of Friday, July 6, reported the news site O Hoje.
For Sheriff Adriana Ribeiro, responsible for the investigation of the case, the evidence points to an execution. "We are working with the hypothesis that the motive of the crime was related to the nature of his work, but we will not discard any possibilities," said Ribeiro, as quoted by G1.
The journalism director of the radio Jornal 820 AM, Cassim Zaidem, agreed with the sheriff. "He [Valério] always was controversial," said the director during an interview with the newspaper Diário da Manhã.
Note from the editor: This story was originally published by the Knight Center’s blog Journalism in the Americas, the predecessor of LatAm Journalism Review.
