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27th September 2023
02:18pm BST
The brother of a football manager who was shot dead on Saturday night has played down reports about the alleged motives behind his death.
Edgar Paez, who was in charge of Second Division side Tigres de Bogota, was driving home from the club’s Metropolitano de Techo stadium in the Colombian capital when he was approached by two men on a white motorbike.
Peaez was shot four times in the neck and skull and despite the best efforts of the staff at Mederi Clinic, died at the hospital due to the severity of the injuries.
Tigres FC had earlier lost 3-2 to Atletico FC de Cali earlier that day and the two hitmen are alleged to have followed the vehicle shared by Paez and his daughter from the stadium for several minutes before firing the shots and fleeing the scene.
She was next to Paez when the shots were fired but wasn’t injured in the attack, which was caught on security cameras.
Colombian outlet El Tiempo have reported that two presidents of Colombian football teams – who chose to remain anonymous – believe the attack could’ve been linked to sports betting.
Just last week president of Colombia’s top flight Major Football Division (Dimayor), Fernando Jaramillo, confirmed in an interview with SEMANA that the league had received ‘alerts’ about instances of match-fixing – the same league that Tigres play in.
No clubs or names were directly named however.
Wilson Paez - the brother of Edgar - has played down those reports however after there were suggestions that the Tigres boss had been involved in money laundering or drug trafficking.
He told television programme NotiCentro: "They are pure speculation. Some journalists and media tend to weave very delicate theories into their information, but they do not reflect the true reality.
"Some suggest that he could be involved in money laundering or drug trafficking, which is far from his economic situation and the results of the investigations against him."
A statement from the league confirmed that all teams would wear black armbands and a minute’s silence would take place in the next round of fixtures.
Tigres also shared a statement paying tribute to their manager, who had been in charge since 2016.
“With deep sadness and dismay we report the murder of the president of our institution, Dr. Edgar Paez Cortes. This unfortunate incident took place today when he was returning to his home, after the match played against Atletico FC.
“The Tigres family and the sports community are devastated by this event. Edgar Paez Cortes was a passionate defender of football and an exemplary leader. His commitment to the team and his dedication to the development of the sport in our region left an indelible mark on all who had the privilege of knowing him.
“We appreciate the respect of the media and the community in this difficult time. The authorities will be in charge of the pertinent investigations.”
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