Gatti strangled by a purse strap?
Police detain wife of former Canadian boxer Arturo Gatti
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, Tales Azzoni
SAO PAULO — Brazilian authorities detained the wife of former boxing champion Arturo Gatti as a suspect on Sunday following his death at a posh seaside tourist resort in Brazil.
Police said 23-year-old Amanda Rodrigues was taken into custody after contradictions in her interrogation. The Canadian boxer’s body was found early Saturday in a hotel room at the Porto de Galinhas resort in northeastern Brazil.
The former junior welterweight champion from Montreal was apparently strangled with the strap of a purse, which was found at the scene with blood stains, said Milena Saraiva, a spokeswoman for the Pernambuco state civil police. She told The Associated Press that Gatti also sustained a head injury.
The investigation was not complete, but Saraiva said authorities were preparing to present a formal accusation against Rodrigues, who denied being involved in her husband’s death.
Police said Rodrigues, a Brazilian, could not explain how she spent nearly 10 hours in the room without noticing that Gatti was already dead.
Police were investigating witness reports that the couple fought and Gatti was drunk when he returned to his room Friday night, Saraiva said, adding that police were told the couple was extremely jealous of each other and that he constantly complained of her clothing when she travelled to Brazil.
Acelino (Popo) Freitas, a four-time world champion Brazilian boxer, told Globo TV’s website on Saturday that he was a close friend of Gatti and his wife and that he “knew they were having some sort of problem and were about to separate.”
The couple’s one-year-old son, who was unhurt, was handed to Rodrigues’ sister, Saraiva said.
The 37-year-old Gatti, whose epic trilogy with Micky Ward branded him one of the most exciting fighters of his generation, retired in 2007 with a career record of 40-9 and 31 knockouts.
Known for his straightforward punching and granite-like chin, Gatti captured the junior welterweight title in 1995, when he defeated Tracy Harris Patterson in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
