News broke in Argentina yesterday that Geronimo Rojo, cousin of Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo, has passed away in hospital after being shot dead by a retired police officer, following an attempt to perform an armed robbery, according to reports.
Geronimo, who was just 17-years-old apparently targeted 50-year-old retired officer Raul Anibal Diaz outside a cash machine in La Plata, a city 25 miles outside of the capital Buenos Aires.
Ivan Rodrigo Barbosa, 26, who has been named as an accomplice in the attempted robbery, was also killed in the aftermath. Barbosa died at the scene after several shots were fired, while Rojo passed away later on, while being treated for a gunshot wound to his shoulder at San Martin Hospital.
Local media have reported that Diaz identified himself to the pair before opening fire and he wasn’t the first person Rojo and Barbosa had targeted that night, with police insiders claiming that a taxi driver accelerated away before they could take anything from him.
La Plata newspaper Hoy identified Geronimo as the Manchester United defender’s cousin.
State prosecutor Betina Lacki is currently investigating the case.
(H/T Manchester Evening News)
