Horror In The Andes: Outspoken Peruvian Journalist And Election Candidate Shot Dead At Crowded Market Rally Days After She Warned A Top Cop Had 'Ordered An Attack'

A firebrand journalist-turned-politician who built a following by blasting alleged corruption and organised crime has been killed in a shocking attack during a campaign stop in the Peruvian Andes.

Susy Aponte Polo, the 43-year-old known across Áncash as ‘La China Polo’, was campaigning for regional governor when she was attacked on Saturday afternoon in a market in the town of Caraz. Several bystanders were also wounded. Elections are due on 4 October.

The mother of two hosted a popular YouTube programme, China Polo Dominical, in which she aired accusations of graft, illegal mining and links between officials and criminal groups. She had recently jumped into politics with the Socios por Áncash movement.

Just days earlier, she had gone public with a chilling warning. In a video, she claimed she had received calls from three different prisons alerting her that a senior police officer, General Víctor Revoredo Farfán, then head of the criminal investigations directorate, had ‘ordered an attack’ against her. She said she had already filed complaints. Those claims remain unproven and form part of the unfolding inquiry.

Police quickly detained a Venezuelan national, Luis Iván Obispo Díaz, as the alleged gunman. Two further suspects were later arrested, including one in Lima accused of helping with logistics. Prosecutors have reclassified the case as presumed contract killing rather than feminicide. The weapon recovered was reportedly a police-issued pistol that had been declared stolen in 2023.

Colleagues from her programme and fellow candidates have demanded a full, independent investigation and protection for the rest of the team. ‘She never stopped investigating,’ they said. ‘We want to know who ordered this and who wanted her silenced.’

Aponte Polo’s past included two old suspended sentences for document-related offences, details that appeared on her official candidate paperwork. Supporters described her as a fearless voice who took on powerful interests in a region long associated with political violence and mining disputes.

Peru’s Attorney General Tomás Gálvez confirmed several detentions and said investigators were following multiple lines of inquiry. The motive has not been officially established.

The killing has sent a shiver through Peru’s already tense regional election campaign, raising fresh questions about the safety of candidates and journalists who challenge entrenched power.