Boxing once again is in the news for the wrong reasons. Edwin Valero, the former WBC lightweight champion who has had numerous troubles since he came on the scene a few years ago, is now being held in a Venezuela jail on suspicion that he murdered his wife Jennifer Viera.
The New York Daily News has more details:
“Edwin Valero was taken into custody early Sunday morning on suspicion that he killed his wife, according to police in Caracas, Venezuela.
Valero was detained after police found the corpse of his 20-year-old wife in a hotel in the city of Valencia, according to Venezuelan Federal Police Chief Wilmer Flores. According to reports, Valero (27-0, 27 knockouts) left the hotel around daybreak and allegedly told security officials there that he murdered his wife, Jennifer Viera.
Police later discovered evidence of three stab wounds on her body. Valero was taken to a police precinct “where we are headed to take samples needed for the investigation of the case,” Flores reportedly told a state television station
This is not the first time that Valero has had brushes with the law in matters concerning his wife. In March, he was charged with harassing his wife and threatening hospital officials who were caring for her. His wife was being treated for cracked ribs and a punctured lung, ailments that Valero’s lawyer explained as being the result of her falling down a flight of steps at their home.
Valero has battled substance abuse problems and on March 28, he entered a rehab clinic in Venezuela, where he is from.”
Valero was possibly in line for a shot at the pound-for-pound Manny Pacquiao, but it doesn’t appear he was able to outrun his demons.
He is a very good fighter. He is actually undefeated and known for his exciting fights. He had a motorcycle accident when he was driving without a helmet that caused a severe clot in his brain. Because of that, many states won’t allow him to fight. His only US exposure has been in Texas where they would allow George Bush, Sr. to fight if the price was right.
There have been a large number of unusual murders in boxing over the last twelve months, but it has been the boxers dying, not the boxers being accused of murder. Just another black eye for the sweet science.