UPDATE: Ex-Miss Venezuela, ex-husband murdered in car in Venezuela

Originally published on January 8, 2014

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Venezuelan authorities have arrested five suspects in connection with the shooting deaths of a former Miss Venezuela and her ex-husband on Monday night during an attempted robbery.

The family was traveling in a grey Toyota Corolla on a highway from Puerto Cabello to Valencia when their car broke down. Some reports say the vehicle may have been damaged by a pothole in the road. The director of the country's investigative police, Jose Gregorio Sierralta, said the car had hit a sharp object. The family was then attacked by five assailants just as a tow truck had finished lifting the car, according to The Independent.

Serralta said the couple and their child locked themselves in the car but "the criminals fired multiple shots at the vehicle."

Their daughter also suffered a bullet wound to the leg, but survived the attack.

Authorities have interrogated the tow truck's two operators, and officials have impounded the couple's car for further analysis.

Reuters reports, "The 2004 Miss Venezuela winner lived in the United States but was vacationing in Venezuela.

"Venezuela's official homicide rate late year was 39 per 100,000 inhabitants, but local non-government organizations put the figure at nearly twice that for a total of 24,000 deaths.

"[President Nicolas] Maduro says beating violent crime is his No. 1 priority, and polls consistently show it to be Venezuelans' main concern.

"But opponents say the government's anti-crime plans do not tackle root causes, such as impunity for criminals, corrupt courts and complicity by some poorly-paid police."

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