Boxing Champ Held After Wife Found Dead

Former lightweight champion Edwin Valero was detained today on suspicion of killing his wife, the gravest in a string of problems that have threatened to derail his career. The Venezuelan federal police chief said Valero was arrested after police found the body of his 20-year-old wife in a hotel in Valencia. Valero left the hotel room around dawn and allegedly told security he had killed Jennifer Viera.

The chief, Wilmer Flores, told state TV police found three stab wounds on Viera's body. He said Valero was transferred a local police precinct, "where we are headed to take samples needed for the investigation of the case" and to question the boxer. The 28-year-old fighter, a household name in Venezuela, has a huge image of Hugo Chavez tattooed on his chest, along with the country's yellow, blue, and red flag. (More Edwin Valero stories.)