Venezuelan authorities say opposition groups linked to death of activist

Venezuelan authorities said on Tuesday that several opposition groups were linked to the death of an activist whose body was found dismembered in a car earlier this month, after preliminary investigation showed that suspects are closely tied to right-wing politicians.

Liana Hergueta, a human rights activist, was killed earlier this month by young opposition figures Carlos Trejo and Jose Perez Venta after a money exchange business went wrong. The homicide caused a sensation in the crime-ridden South American country for its political implications.

Venezuela's national Ombudsman, Tareck Saab, on Tuesday demanded that the local opposition assumes its responsibilities after preliminary investigations have shown that the two are closely linked to right-wing politicians.

"The Venezuelan opposition must condemn this horrible homicide and come forward with a clear position as, obviously, these criminals had a very strong link with its top leaders," Saab told reporters.

The high-ranking official said there could be "no excuse" to " minimize" the links of Trego and Perez Venta with the opposition.

The murder happened after Hergueta denounced Trejo, a member of the opposition party Primero Justicia, over his involvement in the money exchange scam which put at risk his political career. Officials believed Trejo to be the mastermind behind Trejo's death.

Pictures of young activists with top leaders like Lopez have been made public in the last few days.

Both Trejo and Perez Venta participated in illegal and criminal activities in the protests that shook the nation in early 2014 and left 43 dead and over 800 injured.

According to Venezuelan Domestic Affairs Minister Gustavo Gonzalez, Perez Venta has acknowledged he was trained in paramilitary activities by retired general and head of the Popular Will party, Antonio Rivero, a fugitive who lives in the United States. Endite