For the purposes of this article, an assassination is defined as the deliberate, premeditated murder of a prominent figure, often for religious, political or monetary reasons.
An angry mob captured Parke in his house, beat him severely, and dragged him out to die of his wounds.[1] His last words to his tormentors, as he lay dying, were reported as: "Gentlemen, you have no sense of honor left, pray have some of humanity."[2]
Gabino Robles, Vicente Neirot, Lucio Casas, Gregorio Uriarte,
Heredia was shot in the head when he and his son were ambushed by an armed party. The perpetrators left Heredia and his son. The body was discovered 2 days later
Executed by the Peronist guerrilla Montoneros in revenge for the abduction of Evita's body and for the execution of those implicated in a 1956 failed uprising, during Aramburu's dictatorship.
Beaten to death after Angelelli's car was run off the road on orders from III Army Corps Chief Luciano Menéndez.
1977
Juan Carlos Casariego de Bel, Chief Foreign Investments Adviser at Economy Ministry
Army Capt. Héctor Vérgez
Casariego had objected to a $400 million payout for the nationalization of the bankrupt CIADE electric company - one of whose top shareholders was the Economy Minister, José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz.
1978
Miguel Tobías Padilla, Undersecretary for Coordination at Economy Ministry
Montoneros
1985
Osvaldo Sivak, banker
José Benigno Lorea, police officer
Killed following ransom kidnapping by the Aníbal Gordon gang led by former Argentine Anticommunist Alliance operatives.
Elias "Maluco" Pereira da Silva André "Capeta" da Cruz Barbosa Cláudio "Ratinho" Orlando do Nascimento Maurício "Boizinho" de Lima Matias Claudino "Xuxa" dos Santos Coelho Elizeu "Zeu" Felício de Souza Ângelo "Primo" da Silva Reinaldo "Cadê" Amaral de Jesus Fernando "Frei" Sátyro da Silva
Shot eleven times at his home in Vimont, Laval, Quebec. Believed to have been a result in his alleged role in illegal cigarette smuggling in Canada and his ties to the Cotroni Crime Family.
Outspoken critic of extremism, key witness in the trial of the Air India 182 Flight Bombing. This was the third attempt on his life, the first was a thwarted bombing and the second, a shooting, had left him paralysed.
Was kidnapped and killed by far-right paramilitary squads, due to his opposition to any intervention of the armed forces to block the election of left-wing candidate Salvador Allende in 1970.
Although he officially died by sepsis after a low-risk surgery, recent research suggests he was poisoned by the Dirección de Inteligencia Nacional. However, there is no absolute certainty about the real causes of his death.[12]
Killed as revenge for a failed surgery the two doctors had operated on Cortes. Moreno was shot to death inside his home, while Echandi was shot to death outside his door. Cortes also killed Canadian Arthur Maynard that same day.[16][17]
Shot by a gunman outside his home in Kingston. Barrett's widow, Albertine Barrett, was subsequently jailed in 1991, after being convicted of conspiracy to commit murder. Sentenced with her were taxi driver Glenroy Carter, her reputed lover, and Junior "Bang" Neil, a mason, who the prosecution alleged was responsible for the actual shooting.
11 September 1987
Peter Tosh, musician, songwriter, and member of The Wailers
Armed gunmen led by Dennis "Leppo" Lobban
Shot twice in the head after being held hostage and tortured for hours during an armed robbery attempt at his home in Kingston. Killed alongside herbalist Wilton "Doc" Brown and disc jockey Jeff 'Free I' Dixon. Several others in the house were wounded, including Tosh's common law wife Andrea Marlene Brown, Free I's wife Yvonne ("Joy"), Tosh's drummer Carlton "Santa" Davis, and musician Michael Robinson.
Abducted from his hacienda in Michoacán by conservative guerrillas on orders from either Leonardo Márquez or Félix María Zuloaga or both (reports differ). Ocampo was executed by firing squad at the Hacienda of Tlaltengo, Tepeji del Río, in what is today the state of Hidalgo.
Unknown, most likely attributed to a plot orchestrated by future President Plutarco Elías Calles with tacit support and approval of then-president Álvaro Obregón
Shot while being driven in an open car at Parral, Chihuahua. His bodyguards Rafael Madreno and Claro Huertado were also killed.
Murdered as part of a plot by rogue army officers as part of a larger rebellion waged by former interim president Adolfo de la Huerta beginning the previous year. Executed by firing squad alongside three of his brothers, Wilfrido, Benjamín, and Edesio, and eight of their friends in Mérida, Yucatán.
Rubén Jaramillo, revolutionary, politician, and agrarian rights activist
Killed by Federal Judicial Police officers and soldiers raiding his home in an extrajudicial operation near Xochicalco, Miacatlán, Morelos. His wife, Epifanía, three stepsons, were subsequently taken and shot on the premises; the only surviving member of the family was a stepdaughter.
Shot at a Guadalajara restaurant after a physical altercation. Muldoon Barreto then fled to Spain and was never charged upon his return to Mexico in 1980, which was widely attributed to the influence and power possessed by the Muldoon Barreto family within the Mexican government.
Executed on a farm in Culiacán, Sinaloa by two men posing as police officers hours after he had received a death threat via a note live on stage. The two men are believed to have been associated with the local cartel.
Shot at Guadalajara Airport, along with 6 other people, by the Tijuana Cartel using the San Diego-based Logan Heights Gang, either after his car was misidentified as belonging to the Sinaloa cartel or to silence Posadas regarding his denunciation of possible connections between government and drug cartels; some recent speculation that an anti-church group was involved.
Shot while leaving a PRI party meeting in Mexico City. PRI deputy Fernando Rodríguez González confessed to authorities that he hired Aguilar Treviño and his cousin to commit the murder. Aguilar Treviño confessed that he was paid US$500,000 (equivalent to that of $1,038,026.32 in 2023) by Rodríguez González himself to commit the crime.
Ambushed and killed by gunmen by Hernández Barrón after leaving a concert in Reynosa, Tamaulipas along with his chauffeur and assistant. It is widely believed that Elizalde was killed for his concert performances of the corrido, "A Mis Enemigos", which contains lyrics believed to antagonize drug trafficking gang Los Zetas.[24] Hernández Barrón was later killed in a shootout with Mexican Federal Police in Reynosa on July 26, 2014 alongside several cartel members.
Murdered after arriving at his home in Mexico City by being shot at eight times in the chest and once in the hand on behalf of the Beltrán-Leyva Organization in retaliation for the arrest of co-founder Alfredo Beltrán Leyva.
Stabbed in the chest with a knife by his wife during an argument that morning. Taken to a nearby hospital by his family where he was later pronounced dead.
Kidnapped by armed gunmen while driving her daughter to school in Morelia, Michoacán on the 12 November. Gorrostieta Salazar pleaded with her abductors to let her daughter go unharmed, and then agreed to go with the kidnappers. On 15 November, police identified the body after farm workers from the rural community of San Juan Tararameo in Cuitzeo found the corpse on their way to work. Post-mortem reports indicated that she died of a traumatic brain injury, the result of severe blows to the head. She had previously survived three attempts on her life, one of which took the life of her husband José Sánchez Chávez in 2009.
Killed by a gunman approaching behind him in broad daylight while out on a morning jog in Metepec, State of Mexico. Suspect fled the scene with an accomplice nearby. No clear motive has been established in Bermúdez Zacarías' murder, but may be possibly linked to his role as presiding judge in Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán's extradition process, or his complaints against colleagues and court predecessors for judicial irregularities. In October 2019, his ex-wife Marisol Macías Gutiérrez was arrested for allegedly masterminding her ex-husband's murder in a scheme to claim his life insurance plan.
Shot in her restaurant while working a night shift by a group of unknown armed men likely related to the cartel, do to her activism against the cartel's influence in Mexico.
Shot while leaving a debate hall while running for Mexico's general election.[25]
13 January 2020
Homero Gómez González, environmental activist, agricultural engineer, and manager of the El Rosario Butterfly Reserve
Last seen alive on 13 January attending a meeting in the village of El Soldado, Michoacán. His family reported him missing the next day, and received phone calls from individuals claiming to have kidnapped him demanding ransom payments, which they paid. More than two weeks after his disappearance, on 30 January, his body was found in an agricultural reservoir in Ocampo, with an autopsy later revealing a head injury before drowning. Because of his work combating illegal logging, and because Raúl Hernández Romero—another activist connected to the butterfly sanctuary—was also found dead a few days later, it has been speculated that he was targeted by organized criminals.
Shot and killed while standing on a street corner in Ciudad Obregón distributing flyers for his campaign for the municipal presidency. A female campaign worker was also injured. The attack was attributed to the Caborca Cartel, the same group that had carried out the massacre on Murrieta's clients, the LeBarón family, in 2019.[26][27]
Shot twice in the head by hitmen who pulled up in an SUV outside of a chicken shop in Coacalco de Berriozábal, State of Mexico while out with his family. Pending Investigation.
Shot in his vehicle and subsequently died of his wounds at a private hospital in Culiacán. However, it has been alleged his killing is tied to the kidnapping and arrest of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada that same day, whom alleged in a letter that he had arranged a meeting with Cuén and Sinaloa governor Rubén Rocha Moya in order to settle a power dispute before being kidnapped by Joaquín Guzmán López and flown to the United States, where they were subsequently arrested. He also alleged that Cuén was instead shot at the meeting place where the said meeting was due to occur. The investigation by the Attorney General's Office of Sinaloa has been marred by irregularities and accusations of a cover-up. Pending investigation.
Alleged to be the United States by Manuel Noriega and his attorney
Likely killed in an aircraft accident by a radio detonated bomb –– but not confirmed. Much speculation has existed surrounding this incident, and few confirmed sources.
13 September 1985
Hugo Spadafora, guerrilla fighter and political activist
Killed by a group of people who blamed Ridge, who signed the Treaty of New Echota, for the deaths of 4,000 Cherokees on the Trail of Tears. His son, John, and his nephew, Elias Boudinot, were also killed.
Was shot while watching the play Our American Cousin in the presidential box at Ford's Theater in Washington D.C. Lincoln died the next morning on 15 April across the street in a boarding house. Booth and accomplice David Herold hid in a barn in Virginia. Herold surrendered. When Booth refused to go out, the troops set the barn on fire. Booth remained inside the barn but was fatally shot in the neck by Union soldier Boston Corbett.
Shot while playing billiards at the Campbell & Hatch Billiard Parlor in Tombstone, Arizona by Cowboys in retaliation for the Earp Brothers' killings of previous Outlaws.
Thaw had harbored an obsessive hatred of White, believing he had blocked Thaw's access to the social elite of New York. White had also had a previous relationship with Thaw's wife, the model and chorus girl Evelyn Nesbit.
Shot with a handgun in the abdomen after attending a meeting at the State Capital building to help pass "House Bill Number One" by the son-in-law of Long's long-time opponent, Judge Benjamin Henry Pavy, and died two days later. Weiss was shot and killed by Long's bodyguards.
Both brothers disappeared on 19 April 1951, with Philip's being discovered in a marshland area of Jamaica Bay in Brooklyn on the same day having been shot three times, while Vincent's was never discovered. Both were presumed to have been killed on the orders of family underboss Albert Anastasia.
His home in Hattiesburg, Mississippi was fire bombed on the night of January 10, 1966 by the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan leaving Dahmer severely burnt before ultimately dying from smoke inhalation and severe burns to his lungs.
Ray pleaded guilty but later recanted, while a 1999 civil trial convicted restaurant owner Loyd Jowers and 'unknown others', while also noting that 'governmental agencies were parties' to the plot.[33] See Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Shot after giving a speech after winning the California primary. Died 26 hours later on 6 June. Sirhan was convicted on 17 April 1969, and less than a week later was sentenced to death.[34] The sentence was commuted to life in prison in 1972 after the California Supreme Court, in its decision in California v. Anderson, invalidated all pending death sentences imposed in California prior to 1972.
Killed by the Chicago Police Department in a raid. The status of this as an assassination is somewhat disputed; however many sources see this as an assassination or at least a politically motivated extrajudicial execution, with support from the FBI's COINTELPRO program.[35][36][37][38][39][40]
Karen Silkwood, nuclear whistleblower and union activist
Unknown
Run off the road while on her way to provide documents to The New York Times about negligent safety and security at a nuclear-waste reprocessing facility in Cimarron, Oklahoma.
Shot in the back of the head with a shotgun while waiting at the intersection of 10th Street and Snyder Avenue in the Lower Moyamensing neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His murder is credited with sparking the 4 year Philadelphia Mob War which went on to claim over 20 lives.
Executed by the Commission along with his brother-in-law for their involvement in the death of Angelo Bruno, their bodies were found in the trunk of a car in The Bronx battered and naked.
Found dead in an alley behind a variety store in South Philadelphia after being shot three times in the head for his involvement in the death of Angelo Bruno.
Shot and killed by a former fan of the Beatles, who grew to resent Lennon due to statements and actions that he perceived as anti-Christian (most prominently Lennon's joke that the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus") and hypocritical. See Murder of John Lennon.
Moody was convicted in 1991 of sending Judge Vance a mail-bomb as a personal vendetta; however, attorney Daniel Sheehan has claimed Judge Vance was assassinated to influence the outcome of the Iran-Contra litigation Avrignan v. Hull.
Killed by an Arab gunman in a Manhattan hotel who was found guilty of conspiracy charges linking him to Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, "the blind sheik", Al Qaeda's point man in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Kahane's assassination was Al Qaeda's first act of terror on US soil.
Shot five times in the parking lot of the Society of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Club in Springfield, Massachusetts after a hit had been ordered by the acting boss of the Genovese crime family Arthur Nigro.
After performing a show in Kansas City, Missouri along with other Thizz Entertainment members the groups Van was shot at by an unknown assailant while traveling on U.S. Route 71 causing the van to crash and Mac Dre was later pronounced dead at the scene from a bullet wound to the neck.
Shot by Loughner along with his main target Gabrielle Giffords in a supermarket parking lot in Casas Adobes, Arizona during the Congress on Your Corner meeting.
In May 2021, Nicolás Maduro's Attorney General, Tarek William Saab, admitted that Albán did not commit suicide, as initially reported by government officials, but was killed.[44]
^Haas, Jeffrey (2011). The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther. Lawrence Hill Books. ISBN978-1569767092.
