UK millionaire shot dead by robbers in Argentina
A BRITISH millionaire has been shot dead while trying to fight off armed robbers in Argentina.
Matthew Gibbard, 50, was killed and stepson Stefan Zone, 28, needed surgery for a gunshot wound after being ambushed outside their hotel.
CCTV footage posted online shows the pair grappling on the pavement for about 40 seconds with the thieves, who had pulled up on a motorbike.
At least five shots are thought to have been fired after one attacker drew a gun, and Mr Gibbard was hit in the chest.
The businessman, who runs a multimillion-pound holiday and retirement homes firm, was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation outside the five-star, £350a-night Faena Hotel in Buenos Aires, but could not be saved.
Mr Zone was rushed to hospital after being shot in the leg during the heist at 11am local time on Saturday (2pm in Britain).
The bullet is thought to have narrowly missed a major artery and he is no longer in danger.
A police source told the Mail last night that, because of his wealth, Mr Gibbard may have been singled out by a gang before he arrived on Saturday in the exclusive Puerto Madero waterfront district with his family for a Christmas break. Investigations revealed the family’s minibus was followed by the motorbike and at least two cars from Ezeiza Airport.
The motochorros – as robbers on motorbikes are known in Argentina – fled after killing Mr Gibbard and have not been found.
The source said: ‘We have checked cameras at the airport and along their route to the hotel, and they were being followed all the way. Not just the motorbike, but at least two cars as well. We are convinced this wasn’t a random attack and could be the work of an organised gang who knew that they were very wealthy.
‘The transfer company would have been told about the calibre of their client, and if Mr Gibbard was bringing in more than 10,000 US dollars (£7,500) he would have declared it at the airport.
‘The family were clearly marked from the moment they arrived.’
According to the local newspaper Clarín, Mr Gibbard had travelled to Argentina with his mother and wife, as well as Mr Zone and Mr Zone’s wife and brother.
Mr Gibbard is believed to have arranged their holiday with a tour company in the UK, which then hired an Argentinian agency to transfer them from the airport.
His firm, Tingdene, turned over £20million last year. He and his wife, Suzanne, 52, live in a manor house in the village of Lowick, near Kettering, Northamptonshire.
Becky Miles, from The Snooty Fox pub, said: ‘It’s absolutely terrible, they are lovely people. They were regulars.
‘Matt was such a beautiful human being and a true gentleman. He did so much for the village and even put the firework display on himself.
‘They are a successful family and very popular in the village.’
Argentinian president Alberto Fernandez described the murder was ‘an atrocious fact’ and called
‘This wasn’t a random act’
on the police to be ‘inflexible’ in hunting down the culprits.
He added: ‘We must find those responsible and make them pay with the rigour of justice.’
A Foreign Office spokesman said: ‘We are supporting the family of two British men following an incident in Buenos Aires.’
More than 111,000 Britons went to Argentina in 2018. The Foreign Office said most visits were trouble-free. But it warned tourists to be alert to street crime, including armed robberies, and advised them to hand over cash and valuables without resistance.