The Catalyst

By Rachel Davis, Reporter

Former lightweight champion Edwin Valero was detained Sunday on suspicion of killing his wife, the gravest in a string of problems that have threatened to derail his career.

Venezuelan Federal Police Chief Wilmer Flores 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 on Sunday and allegedly told security that he had killed Jennifer Viera, Flores said.

Flores told state television that 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.

Valero's lawyer, Milda Mora, did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment.

The 28-year-old fighter is a household name in Venezuela and he has a huge image of President Hugo Chavez tattooed on his chest, along with the country's yellow, blue and red flag.

Valero shot to fame when he won his first 18 fights by first-round knockout, setting a record that has since been eclipsed by Tyrone Brunson. Valero last fought in February, stopping Antonio DeMarco in an entertaining fight in Monterrey, Mexico.

He was replaced as WBC lightweight champion in February after he expressed a desire to campaign in a higher weight division, WBC president Jose Sulaiman said.

Valero was involved in a motorcycle accident in 2001 that resulted in a cerebral hemorrhage, and because most jurisdictions refused to license a fighter who sustained a brain injury, he was unable to fight in the United States. The boxer wound up fighting mainly in Japan and Latin America, where he won his first title in 2006.