Mané de Oliveira: "Football killed my son"
In an interview, the father suggests that the death could be linked to the strong opinions of radio host Valério Luiz; he also said that he doesn't know who killed his son: "If I knew, I would have said so, I have suspects"; police have a composite sketch of the gunman, but will not release it.
Goiás247_ Sports journalist Mané de Oliveira said yesterday that football killed his son, igniting the controversy surrounding the alleged motive behind the murder of radio broadcaster Valério Luiz. The statement refers to suspicions that the crime may have been ordered by a director or supporter of Atlético Clube Goianiense, a team in the Brazilian First Division and the target of constant and harsh criticism from Valério in recent months. Valério was murdered last Thursday around 14 PM as he was leaving the studio of Rádio Jornal 820 AM. He was executed with six shots fired by a motorcyclist.
Mané retracted the statement he gave on the day of the crime, when he claimed to know who had killed Valério. "It was a father's outburst. It was despair." He added: "If I had known, I would have said so; I have suspects."
Mané reports that in a recent statement, Valério vehemently criticized the crisis at Atlético, currently at the bottom of the Brazilian Championship standings. According to the journalist, his son made an "exaggerated" comment when two club directors were dismissed. The commentator said on air that "when the ship is sinking, the first ones to leave the hold are the rats." "I don't agree with that kind of comment. If I could, I would have shut his mouth," said Mané.
Following this comment, Mané states that the Goiás team sent an official letter signed by the president, vice-president, and director of football to the two media outlets where Valério Luiz worked, PUC TV and Rádio Jornal 820 AM, requesting the commentator's dismissal. If the request was not granted, Atlético would prohibit the two media outlets from entering the club's premises. The prohibition remains in effect to this day.
Atlético's press office stated that no official request for Valério's dismissal had been sent, but confirmed that both media outlets were prohibited from accessing the club, as the entire staff supported the columnist's comments.
Following the example he gave at his son's funeral last Friday, Mané again asked for help from colleagues, human rights representatives, and especially the police in solving the crime. Mané emphasized that the objective of his request is to arrest the mastermind behind the crime. He said he has no doubt that the crime was commissioned, and even stated that he has suspicions, but made it clear that since he has no proof, he cannot name names until the end of the investigations.
The Civil Police say they have a composite sketch of the gunman, but will not release it to the press for now. Videos from surveillance systems installed in buildings near the crime scene are being analyzed, as are witness statements, mostly from people who were passing by the radio station moments before the shooting.
Motivation
Mané believes Valério's death was caused by his controversial nature: "That was my son's only flaw: his aggressive style of saying exactly what all the other columnists were saying." The journalist explained that he is unaware of any concrete conflicts his son had and asked that any potential witnesses come forward. "Anyone who knows anything that could have led to my son's death, I ask that you contact the police. We need clues," said Mané.
Mané was approached by journalists with questions related to the alleged motives for the crime. Hypotheses such as conflicts from an extramarital affair or related to loan sharking were dismissed by the columnist. The journalist explained that there are rumors circulating in sports circles that Valério had been pressured to abandon his profession. "I don't know who said that, if I knew I would say so."
The president of the Association of Sports Journalists of Goiás, Romes Xavier, believes that the death of his journalism colleague may have been motivated by his opinions. "I worked with him for many years, Valério was very well-liked, but controversial. He was a great professional, with thirty years of experience. Everything leads us to believe that his critical and strong opinions have something to do with the murder," he said.