Advertisement
The late Federico Aramburu.

Suspect charged over murder of rugby star Aramburu in Paris

The former Argentina international won 22 caps for his country.

LAST UPDATE | 22 Mar 2022

A WOMAN WAS on Tuesday in connection with the murder of former Argentina rugby international Federico Aramburu in Paris at the weekend, a legal source said, while two of the main suspects are still being sought.

The 24-year-old suspect has been charged with being an “accomplice to murder” and held in custody, the source said.

The killing occurred in the chic Saint-Germain district on the Left Bank of the French capital in the early hours of Saturday morning after Aramburu and friends became embroiled in an argument at a bar.

The row at the Mabillon cafe at around 6am on Saturday saw bouncers separate two groups, according to investigators.

After leaving the scene, two men are believed to have returned and fired several shots from a car at Aramburu, a 42-year-old former Argentina international, who died at the spot.

The 24-year-old woman arrested on Monday is suspected of driving the vehicle for the two chief suspects, both in their 30s and members of a fringe far-right political group, sources close to the case told AFP.

Aramburu played as a centre or wing, winning 22 Argentina caps including at the 2007 World Cup in France where he scored a try as the Pumas beat the hosts in the third-place playoff.

He played club rugby in France for Biarritz, Perpignan and Dax from 2004 to 2010, winning the Top 14 twice with Biarritz and later sitting on the club’s board of directors.

“There was an altercation, as there can be at the end of the evening. It was settled but the men came back and fired at Aramburu, who took three bullets,” a former Biarritz Olympique player who was with him told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Since his retirement from sport, Aramburu had lived in Biarritz and worked for a tourism company.

“This heinous crime and his death have left his family, friends and the world of rugby stunned and in unspeakable pain,” a lawyer for Aramburu’s family, Yann Le Bras, said in a statement on Sunday.

 

Updated at 8.51pm

– © AFP 2022

A new episode of The Front Row, in partnership with Guinness, is out now. After Ireland’s Triple Crown win, Murray Kinsella gives us the rundown on his team of the tournament. Ireland international Sene Naoupu also joins the panel to chat about her career and look ahead to the start of the Women’s Six Nations. Click here to subscribe or listen below:


The42 / SoundCloud

Author
AFP
View comments
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy here before taking part.
Leave a Comment
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.

    Leave a commentcancel