The violent death of 29-year-old actress and model Mónica Spear during a robbery in Caracas has unleashed a wave of anger among Venezuelans, for whom insecurity and violence have become common in recent years.
On the night of Monday, Jan. 6, the former Miss Venezuela and her husband, Irish national Thomas Henry Berry, 49, were shot to death after resisting a robbery, while their daughter, 5-year-old Maya, was shot in the leg.
Spear's legacy as a famous actress and TV host, with a long presence in the U.S. through appearences on TV network Telemundo, has caused the population of Venezuela to protest against violence and insecurity in Venezuela. As El Universal reports, according to the Venezuelan Violence Observatory, there are 79 murders for every 100,000 citizens.
According to ABC, the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, said he regretted Spear's murder and asked Venezuelans "not to manipulate and turn the case into something political."
Five People Have Been Arrested for the Murder
Venezuelan authorities have said that five people, among them minors, have been arrested as suspects related to the murders on a highway in Caracas.
José Gregorio Sierralta, national director of the Scientific, Penal and Criminalistics Research Corps of Venezuela, said in a press conference that the incident happened when the car in which the family travelled broke down on the highway, according to the Daily Mail.
According to authorities, the attempted robbery happened as they were helped by a couple of tow trucks. "Unfortunately, when the car was already being towed, they were surprised by various individuals, who, when they noticed the family had locked themselves in the car... decided to shoot them and kill them," Sierralta said.
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