Beauty queen and British husband shot dead in front of daughter, five
A former Miss Venezuela and her husband, described by local media as Irish, have been shot dead during a robbery after their car broke down in the country.
Monica Spear, 29, and Henry Thomas Berry, 39, were attacked in front of their young daughter near Puerto Cabello, Venezuela’s main port.
The couple’s five-year-old daughter was reported to have been injured in the attack and was stable in hospital.
Local media is reporting that Berry was Irish; however his Facebook profile lists his home city as London.
The Department of Foreign Affairs are checking reports that he is an Irish man, with Irish diplomats talking to officials in the Irish embassy in Mexico which covers Venezuela.
The British Foreign Office in London says it is not aware of any incident involving a British citizen.
The family lived in the United States and was on holiday. Their car broke down and they were awaiting a tow truck.
Ms Spear was crowned Miss Venezuela in 2004 and acted in numerous soap operas for the US-based Telemundo network.
Venezuela has one of the world’s highest murder rates. Violent crime is so acute that people tend to stay home after dark.
