Overview
- The candidate and investigative journalist Susy Isabel Aponte Polo was shot and killed during a campaign walk in the market of Caraz on Saturday, and five bystanders were wounded and taken to hospitals.
- Police intercepted and detained a 30-year-old Venezuelan suspect identified by the initials L.I.O.D. on the Carretera Central and reported seizing a firearm.
- The Fiscalía opened a preliminary investigation, ordered the body lifted and security-camera reviews, and sent homicide and criminal-investigation teams from Lima to Áncash to lead forensics and scene work.
- Aponte had publicly reported receiving threats in the days before the attack, including alleged calls from prisons, and she ran the China Polo Dominical outlet that published investigations into alleged local corruption and illegal activity.
- The Defensoría and press organizations criticized a delayed police response, demanded a transparent probe and warned the killing risks reinforcing impunity for attacks on journalists as Peru approaches the October regional elections.