On 1 September 2004, unidentified men shot and killed radio show host Mauro Marcano in the city of Maturín, eastern Venezuela, reports the Institute for Press and Society (Instituto Prensa y Sociedad, IPYS).

Marcano, 55, was the host of an opinion show on Radio 1.080 AM, a local station. Unofficial sources say he had implicated several local businessmen in reports on drug trafficking. Del Valle was also a councilor for the Acción Democrática party and headed the Maturín Municipal Chamber's Common Lands Commission.

For more information, visit:

- IFEX: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/139/
- IPYS: http://www.ipys.org
- Reporters Without Borders:
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=11355