Police ask for public's help in finding father suspected of murdering 2-year-old son
Child found dead in hotel as investigators suggest motive of crime was to 'harm mother'
The Catalan police are looking for a 44-year-old man suspected of having killed his two-year-old son on Tuesday evening in a Barcelona hotel.
Mossos d'Esquadra have revealed his full name, Martín Ezequiel Álvarez Giaccio, and a picture of him, in an effort to seek the public's help in finding him.
He is 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), athletic, olive-skinned, and has a shaved head, trimmed beard, and brown eyes.
He is thought to have escaped the Concordia Hotel, in the Sants-Montjuïc district, after having committed the crime at around 10:30 pm on Tuesday.
Cadena SER station broke the news on Tuesday evening, stating that Álvarez Giaccio and his wife were in the midst of a separation and had sent her messages saying that she would "regret it."
Investigators, along with the Barcelona and Catalonia governments, believe that his motive was to "harm the mother" of the deceased child, in the words of the city's mayor, Ada Colau.
"Sexist violence is a top-priority political problem"
Tània Verge · Catalan feminism minister
The police urge anyone who may have information on the alleged murderer to call the 112 emergency hotline.
On Wednesday, a minute of silence was held in the Catalan capital to condemn the incident and to support the child's family.
The Catalan feminism minister, Tània Verge, said that sexist violence "is a top-priority political problem."
She also deems this crime to be one of the 11 femicides that have taken place in 2021 thus far.
Verge called on residents to report any signs of violence that they may witness, be it physical aggressions or screams.
- Image of the banner made public by Mossos d'Esquadra police seeking public's help to find the alleged murderer Martín Ezequiel Álvarez Giaccio (by Mossos d'Esquadra)
