Carlos Roberto Hoyos Puerta, acting mayor of the town of Chigorodo in the Antioquia department, north-west Colombia, was assassinated by unknown persons in the rural area of Uraba.
The attack was committed with a firearm while Hoyos was visiting one of his properties in a village close to Uraba. His driver, who was with him at the time, was not injured.
“The official had not neither complained of any threats from any groups outside the law nor had he requested special protection,” the municipal administration spokesman told RCN Radio.
The Uraban authorities have started an investigation to find those responsible and establish the motive for the murder.
Hoyos was acting as mayor in the absence of Mayor Manuel Riveras, who was attending a meeting in the city of Cali. The slain official was also the region’s transport secretary.