Tijuana priest shot dead by unknown assailants

Published: 2005-10-26

MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- An unknown gunman shot and killed a Catholic priest from the border city of Tijuana, and authorities suspect the murder might have been the work of organized crime. Father Luis Velasquez Romero was handcuffed in his car and shot six times with a pistol during the early hours of Oct. 24, Mexican media reported. The city's top homicide detective, Francisco Castro Trenti, said police were "provisionally" treating the murder as related to organized crime, the Mexico City newsmagazine Proceso reported. However, Castro said police were unaware of Father Velasquez having received any threats. Father Velasquez, 52, was well-known in Tijuana for his outspoken sermons that often criticized local politicians. The Tijuana newspaper Frontera reported that police did not discover his body for an hour after the murder, despite the shooting having occurred in Plaza Zapato, a trendy bar and nightclub complex.

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