Dissident Soldiers, Protestor Killed in Venezuela

abcnews.go.com Feb. 18 — By Phil Stewart

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Three military dissidents and a female protester opposed to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez have been killed execution-style after being kidnapped, bound and gagged, police said on Tuesday.

Police refused to comment on the investigation, or to discuss possible motives or suspects.

All four victims frequented Plaza Altamira, the site of more than 120 days of protests against Chavez' government. The dead military men had also joined a call for popular resistance led by anti-Chavez Gen. Enrique Medina.

A 14-year-old girl who apparently witnessed at least one of the killings was hospitalized after being shot, but is talking, police said.

Raul Yepez, deputy director of the Caracas police homicide division, said the four victims had been fired upon with shotguns. It appeared that all of them went missing last week.

"We are conducting the investigation to try to answer these questions," he said.

Despite occasional violence in Venezuela's political standoff, there have been no confirmed selective killings of Chavez's allies or enemies. Still, street clashes have claimed at least seven lives and left scores injured since December.

The Venezuelan leader says his self-styled "revolution" for the poor is a peaceful one. His opponents, however, blame his aggressive class-warfare rhetoric for inspiring his supporters to take up arms.

Police said the victims were army soldier Darwin Arguello, marine infantry corporal Angel Salas and air force soldier Felix Pinto.

FORENSICS REPORT

A forensics report seen by Reuters indicated that a least of two of soldiers had been dead for about 72 hours. Their bodies were abandoned on the side of a multi-lane highway heading out of Caracas.

Yepez said at least one other victim was found on a farm on the outskirts of the capital.

The civilian victim, Zaida Perozo, had been wounded during a Dec. 6 shooting at Plaza Altamira, where she was protesting, said Carlos Bastidas, a lawyer for the dissident military officers.

At least one gunmen left three people dead and more than 20 injured in that attack which opposition leaders blamed on the government. Pinto was a material witness to the incident and had been considering testifying against the alleged shooter, Joao de Gouveia, said Bastides.

"It's very easy to put forward ideas or personal judgments ... but there is an element between this case and the case of Joao de Gouveia: that is one of the victims and a witness to Dec. 6 have died," Bastidas said.

Chavez is struggling to consolidate his power after surviving a coup last year. He has rebuffed calls by his opponents for early elections to cut short his term in office, which is set to end in 2007.