Silke Jasso
Argentina’s vice president miraculously survived an assassination attempt after the gunman’s weapon jammed. The man tried to shoot her at close range, hiding outside her home. Luckily, Vice President Cristina Fernandez was unharmed in the terrifying incident.
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The man attempted to shoot the vice president as she was surrounded by a large crowd of supporters outside of her home in Buenos aires. This is according to a statement by President Alberto Fernandez. Video footage of the attempted shooting shows the vice president greeting supporters near a while vehicle.
That’s when a hand appears from out of the crowd holding a black gun. The man is seen pulling the trigger several inches away from her face and a click is heard. Luckily, no shot ran out. Several crowd members quickly turned into the man, holding him in position.
Suspect Arrested in Assassination Attempt
According to the president, the gun was loaded with five bullets. “A man pointed a firearm at her head and pulled the trigger,” he noted. The assailant was identified as Fernando Sabag Montiel who was arrested by police shortly after the incident. His weapon was also seized.
It still isn’t clear what his motive might have been. According to the president, this was the most serious incident since the end of the country’s military junta back in 1983. “We can disagree, we can have deep disagreements, but in a democratic society, hate speech cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no possibility of violence co-existing with democracy,” he stated. “Our vice president has been attacked and social peace has been disturbed.”
The vice president served two terms as the country’s president from 2007 to 2015. She is currently facing charges of corruption during her time as president, but she has consistently denied them. Fernandez became Argentina’s first elected female president in 2007. Prior to that, she was the first lady when her husband Nestor Kirchner led in the early 200s.
