| Andrés Escobar |
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He was a Defender for Colombia in the Football World Cup in 1990 and 1994 . His shirt number was 2. THE KILLING On July 2 , 1994 , Escobar was gunned down outside a bar in a Medellín suburb. According to Escobar's girlfriend, the killer shouted "''¡Gol!''" ("goal") for each of the 12 bullets fired. Escobar had scored an own goal in a match against the United States on 22 June . Stretching to cut out a cross, he deflected the ball into his own net in the second match of Group A . The USA won the game 2–1, and as a result, Colombia was unexpectedly dismissed from the Tournament in the first round. The murder was clearly a punishment for the own goal. It is not clear whether the murderer acted on his own initiative, or whether he was sent out by one of the Gambling Syndicate s who had bet large amounts of money on Colombia to win the Cup, or at least qualify for the second round. The BBC issued an apology the following day after its Pundit Alan Hansen commented on another match that "the Argentine defender wants shooting for a mistake like that." {Link without Title} THE KILLER Humberto Muñoz Castro was found guilty of Escobar's murder in June 1995 and sentenced to 43 years in prison. Muñoz had been working as a Bodyguard . The sentence was later reduced to 26 years due to his submitting to the ruling Penal Code in 2001 . Muñoz was released on good behavior due to further reductions from prison work and study in 2005 after serving approximately 11 years, in a move which was considered controversial. |
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