Última Hora News
November 21, 2012, in Campo Grande, Brazil

A motorcycle-riding assailant shot Carvalho, editor and owner of the news website Última Hora News, at his home in Campo Grande, capital of Mato Grosso do Sul state, according to news reports. Carvalho often covered local corruption, news reports said.

The journalist and his wife were arriving home at night when the gunman, riding on the back of a motorcycle, shot him at least three times. Carvalho's wife retrieved a gun the journalist carried, but the weapon was locked and she could not return fire, according to news reports. The gunman and the motorcycle driver fled the scene.

Carvalho, a former military police officer, frequently wrote critical reports about police and politicians, according to Última Hora News. The website reported that the journalist was authorized to carry a gun because he had been threatened and had survived an earlier assassination attempt. Police officials told reporters that Carvalho had been the subject of many lawsuits related to his reporting.

His most recent story, published on the day of his murder, accused an unnamed military police official of intimidating local citizens. Divino Furtado Mendonça, the municipal police chief, told reporters that investigators were focusing on Carvalho's journalistic work as the likely motive, according to news reports.

Medium:Internet
Job:Publisher / Owner
Beats Covered:Corruption, Crime
Gender:Male
Local or Foreign:Local
Freelance:No
Type of Death:Murder
Suspected Source of Fire:Government Officials
Impunity:Yes
Taken Captive:No
Tortured:No
Threatened:Yes

This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.