The newspapers continue to aim their focus on the grim story of murdered San Cristobal businessman Jose Castro, apparently killed by a domestic servant at the behest of his wife and children. Neighbors and friends of the family are coming forward to tell reporters that it was an “open secret” that Castro was violent towards his family, and that his wife had reported to him to police on several occasions, but that he was able to “sort the matter out” with them and escape any judicial punishment. The papers carry descriptions of several brutal incidents against the young children – including broken limbs, attempted drownings and even bullet wounds – as well as against Miriam Brito, his wife. Brito is depicted as a timid woman who tried to leave her husband on more than one occasion in the course of their 16-year marriage, only to be tracked down and brought home against her will. The couple had sought professional counseling, but Castro had stopped attending the sessions and forbidden his wife to return. “She felt unprotected by the justice system,” said her niece, journalist Nancy Brito, as quoted in Listin Diario, “?and look what this led to.” Castro was also violent in his professional life, according to sources, and had made threats against journalists reporting on his company’s contentious sand extraction activities.