The day one of the pageant finalists was murdered

Miss Universe 2025 It will be the edition that concludes a decade that began with a strong Latin American imprint in the beauty competition par excellence in the world.

Miss Universe 2005, stayed in Canada, however Natalie Glebova Four of them came in Latin America: Cynthia Olavarria (Cuba), Renata Soni (dominican republic), Laura Elizondo (Mexico) and Monica Spear (Venezuela).

Today, they are all between 42 and 43 years old, and they continue to be role models for their countries. Except for the spear, Who was killed in 2014 in a brutal crime.

Maracaibera was only 20 years old when she was chosen Miss Venezuela 2004. From there she got the key to representing her country the following year, also in Thailand, where her Venezuelan counterpart was present within a few days, Stephanie Abasali, He will be viewed as one of the great candidates.

Miss Universe 2005 opened doors for her in the local entertainment industry: she became a leading actress in television series and, over time, a figure of interest in the national media.

When he woke up on the morning of January 6, 2014, he did not know that his name would be on the front pages of newspapers the next day: At the age of 29, his life would be taken in an attack that would shock the world..

At approximately 10:30 p.m., Spear, her husband Thomas Henry Perry“, 39 years old, and her daughter MayaA 5-year-old boy was intercepted by a gang of criminals while driving his car on km 194 of the Valencia-Puerto Cabello highway, in Carabobo state, Venezuela.

They were returning to Caracas after their car broke down after colliding with an object that was deliberately placed on the road.

As they waited for the wreck to do its work, at least six people surrounded them. They resisted and tried to protect themselves by closing the car doors, but the gang did not surrender: The brutal shooting began.

Lance was shot three times (in the arm, buttocks, and leg) and Perry was shot once (in the chest). They died instantly. Maya survived, although she was shot in the leg.

The attackers fled without being able to steal the family’s belongings, as the victims were found with their valuables inside the car. The crane operators managed to escape during the shooting and notified authorities at a nearby police station.

The bodies were transported to Caracas. The marriage was witnessed two days later in front of hundreds of people in the monumental church of La Guairita. On January 10, they were buried together in the Oriental Cemetery in the Venezuelan capital.

This issue, which had captured public attention at the time, prompted the president to make a statement Nicolas Maduro. The president condemned it and described it as a “massacre”, and thus declared… National pacification plan. The authorities appointed special prosecutors for the case and deployed police operations to arrest those responsible.

The day before the funeral, police had already identified seven suspects for their alleged involvement and confirmed a motive Theft foiled. Meanwhile, four other suspects – including the holder of the murder weapon – remain at large.

The search for fugitives crossed borders. On March 21, the Ecuadorian Minister of the Interior reported that five Venezuelan nationals (three men and two women, ages 16 to 20) were detained in Pedro Carbo Canton, Guayas Province, in connection with the killings of Spear and Peri.

Eight months later, the first convictions were recorded. A court in Puerto Cabello convicted three men, aged 18, 19 and 23, after they admitted to participating in the attack. They were sorry about that Qualified premeditated murder, qualified murder with a degree of frustration (for assaulting the 5-year-old daughter), obstruction of public roads, aggravated robbery, and conspiracy to commit a crime..

By then, the case involved at least 10 detainees (including those who had confessed), and new court proceedings were being prepared.

With the arrest of the eleventh suspect almost a year after the first convictions, justice has completed the dismantling of the entire gang. The latest fugitive, like many previous fugitives, ended up confessing.

The story had another violent turn: one of the detainees awaiting trial, “Adolfito” Rico Agreda, He was stabbed to death in his cell by two people who were also involved in the crime.. He was 27 years old.

All eleven members of the gang were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 4 to 30 years. The longest – the maximum possible in Venezuela – had the co-authors of the attack: AAlejandro Jesus Maldonado Pérez (El Feo, 23 years old) Franklin Daniel Cordero Alvarez (“Establishment”, 30) and Leonardo Danilo Marcano Lugo (“Fat Danilo”, 34).

On November 21, when the Miss Universe 2025 contest takes place, Venezuela will be attentive to the legacy of the person who left a lasting mark on the environment despite her early departure.