Police in La Plata are investigating the suicide of a Malvinas War veteran, with suspicions growing about its connection with the disappearance nine days ago of the man's 47-year-old girlfriend.
Gisella Solís Calle, a dentist in the Buenos Aires provincial capital, went missing nine days ago. Her boyfriend Abel Casimiro Campos committed suicide last Sunday in a downtown hotel, police confirmed to local media.
The woman's sister said Thursday she had reason to believe Solis Calle had been poisoned, after forensic testing revealed substances on Casimiro Campos' clothing.
Police were still searching for evidence that would help them locate Solís Calle, with horseback search efforts focussed on rural along Route 6 between La Plata and San Vicente.
Casimiro Campos fought in the Malvinas War and was working at the IOMA public health fund. He shot himself in the head in a downtown La Plata hotel on Sunday, according to police.
Investigators found two glasses of wine and vomit in the bathroom of the missing woman's home, local media reported. Her boyfriend's truck had also reportedly been copiously cleaned following her disappearance.
Sensitivities about violence against women are particularly strong in Argentina, following years of high-profile and gruesome cases and a femicide rate of one woman every 36 hours, according to rights groups.
-TIMES
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