Leader of Puerto Rican People’s Army shot, killed by FBI
{{date|September 27, 2005}}

[[w:Filiberto Ojeda Ríos|Filiberto Ojeda Ríos]], a leading figure in the [[w:Puerto Rican Independence|Puerto Rican Independence]] movement in [[w:Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico]], died September 23rd.
An autopsy showed that this was due to blood loss from a single gunshot wound, obtained during a confrontation with FBI agents in the municipality of [[w:Hormigueros, Puerto Rico|Hormigueros, Puerto Rico]].

The 72-year-old has been wanted on charges relating to a $7M bank heist in Connecticut in 1983, and his home had been surrounded by over 300 agents, including 20 snipers.
The FBI asserts that he fired shots upon them first, but many groups are framing the death as the unwarranted assassination of a key player in Puerto Rico's anti-U.S. colonialism movement.

The FBI did not enter the home until Saturday, almost 24 hours after the shot had been fired.
This has lead to many accusations that they were preventing him from getting medical attention.
Dr. Héctor Pesquera, spokesperson for the [[w:National Hostosian Congress|National Hostosian Congress]], took part in the autopsy and stated that the FBI tactic was to not intervene in order that "Comandante Ojeda Ríos would bleed to death through lack of medical attention."

FBI director Robert S. Mueller announced Monday that he had ordered an investigation of the incident.

== Sources ==
*{{source|url=http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/09/26/1434229#transcript
|title=FBI Assassinates Puerto Rican Nationalist Leader Filiberto Ojeda Rios
|author=
|pub=Democracy Now
|date=September 26, 2005}}
*{{source|url=http://www.granma.cu/ingles/2005/septiembre/lun26/40fbi.html
|title=FBI let Puerto Rican independence fighter bleed to death
|author=
|pub=Granma
|date=September 27, 2005}}
*{{source|url=http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/connecticut/ny-bc-ct--wellsfargorobbery0926sep26,0,6221494.story?coll=ny-region-apconnecticut
|title=FBI director orders investigation of shooting that killed Puerto Rican nationalist
|author=
|pub=Newsday
|date=September 27, 2005}}

== External links ==
* [http://pr.indymedia.org/news/2005/09/9966.php?l=en Photographs from memorial service, protest rally (Spanish language site)]

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 {{archive}}
[[Category:North America]]
[[Category:Puerto Rico]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Politics and conflicts]]
[[Category:FBI]]
Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, a leading figure in the Puerto Rican Independence movement in Puerto Rico, died September 23rd.
An autopsy showed that this was due to blood loss from a single gunshot wound, obtained during a confrontation with FBI agents in the municipality of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico.

The 72-year-old has been wanted on charges relating to a $7M bank heist in Connecticut in 1983, and his home had been surrounded by over 300 agents, including 20 snipers.
The FBI asserts that he fired shots upon them first, but many groups are framing the death as the unwarranted assassination of a key player in Puerto Rico's anti-U.S. colonialism movement.

The FBI did not enter the home until Saturday, almost 24 hours after the shot had been fired.
This has lead to many accusations that they were preventing him from getting medical attention.
Dr. Héctor Pesquera, spokesperson for the National Hostosian Congress, took part in the autopsy and stated that the FBI tactic was to not intervene in order that "Comandante Ojeda Ríos would bleed to death through lack of medical attention."

FBI director Robert S. Mueller announced Monday that he had ordered an investigation of the incident.
North America Puerto Rico United States Politics and conflicts FBI