Boxer Hector 'Macho' Camacho dead

GlobalPost

Legendary Puerto Rican boxer Hector "Macho" Camacho has died after being taken off life support this morning.

The director of the Centro Medico trauma center in Puerto Rico, Dr. Ernesto Torres, told AP the 50-year-old went into cardiac arrest in the pre-dawn hours of today, Saturday.

He was then taken off life support and passed away.

The sad news comes four days after the 50-year-old was shot in the face while sitting in a Ford Mustang in front of a bar in his hometown of Bayamon, Puerto Rico.

He was declared brain dead two days later and his family has been in discussions about what steps to take, torn between keeping him alive or ending his struggle.

Dr. Ernesto Torres initially told reporters that Camacho was likely to survive, but his prognosis degraded.

Camacho was shot in the face on Tuesday night during a drive-by shooting outside a bar. A man with Camacho died, CNN said.

A search continues for the suspects, believed to be two men who were travelling in a gray vehicle, said Lt. Wilfredo Rivera, of Cataño Police.

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The bullet hit Camacho in the jaw, fractured two vertebrae and lodged in his shoulder. Police gave chase, but the suspects eluded capture after a shootout, CNN reported.

Reuters identified the dead man as lifelong friend Alberto Yamil Mojic.

Camacho’s boxing career included three world championships and fights against legends such as Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad, Roberto Duran, Julio Cesar Chavez and Sugar Ray Leonard.

He won 79 fights and lost 6, and planned to fight again as recently as 2010.

However, Camacho also ran into drug and alcohol problems. He spent a short time in jail after a 2005 burglary arrest in Missouri.

He was also a cast member of Univision’s version of “Dancing with the Stars,” called “Mira Quien Baila,” Reuters said.

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