Seven Latin American taxi driver homicides
Reported in the Spanish-language press July 2007

Following are summaries of online news items reviewed by Karl Weiszhaar of Denver.

Aldo Fabian Otta, 46, Córdoba, Argentina. 7-14-07. Shot and killed in robbery attempt.

Ernesto Juan Rodríguez Tiapa, 34, Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela. 7-11-06 Ernesto had the mishap of having three youths who had just robbed a bakery. They got into his cab and told him to go. The cops came by and yelled at the boys. The boys left. The cops came up to the cab. Ernesto told the cops that he wasn't one of the robbers. They shot him three times and killed him anyway.

Mario Rubén Carrizo, 62, Jujuy, Argentina. 12-15-2006. Mario was being robbed by three men when he pulled out a gun to defend himself. This frightened one of the robbers who then shot Mario. Not only was he shot, but stabbed and cut up. The bullets were determined to be the cause of death.

Luis Limber Augusto Zambrano, 33, Caracas, Venezuela. 7-8-2007. Luis was in his cab working on the horn. Somebody walked up, shot him twice, and walked away. There are two theories. One, he turned down a fare and they shot him for that. The other, 15 days before he had an accident with a bus. The bus driver threatened to kill him. The bus driver's alibi checked out, but suspicion remains.

Heraclio Chávez Mitra, 35, San Pedro Mixtepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. 7-5-2007. He was stabbed 22 times with an ice pick. He was last seen picking up two individuals after dropping off two women. Robbery has been discounted as motive. Police are investigating other leads.

Eduar Maestre Gnneco, 27, Valledupar, Colombia. Date is uncertain, may be 7-2-07. The article mentions that he was a route driver. The name of the company is Cootaxi Express. He was seen bringing four people into Valledupar. He dropped a woman off and then was seen driving away "seemingly under threat". He was later found dead on a river bank.

Juan Cobix Velasco was found beaten to death in Jesús Carranza, Veracruz, Mexico on 6-30-2007. He was a driver in Acayucan. His cab was found in Acayucan, which is about 50 miles from where his body was found. Because of the condition of the body, it is believed that he was killed in the early hours of June 30.

This news digest is for informative purposes only. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107 and The Berne Convention on Literary and Artistic Works, Article 10, news clippings on this site are made available without profit for research and education.

[ Back to top ]