Argentina VP Cristina Fernandez De Kirchner Evades Death After Gunman's Weapon Jammed During Assassination Attempt

Argentina's vice president and former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who is facing corruption charges, has narrowly avoided assassination.

During a rally with supporters outside her home Thursday, a man emerged from the crowd and tried to shoot the vice president, pointing a handgun in her face. Luckily, the gun jammed as he aimed at her. Her assassin was reportedly aiming for her head, BBC reported

According to state-run news agency Télam, the alleged gunman was Fernando Andrés Zabak, a 35-year-old Brazilian man. However, authorities had not confirmed this information.

The Brazilian citizen was quickly taken into custody that night following the attempt on the vice president's life.

Argentina President Alberto Fernandez Condemns Attack on Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez, a staunch ally of the vice president, said police had recovered the gun and found that it was loaded with five bullets.

He quickly condemned the attack on his ally's life. The president noted that "hate speech cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no chance of violence coexisting with democracy."

He said the attempt on the vice president's life was one of the "most serious" incidents to have happened in the country since it returned to democracy in 1983. After the attack, Fernandez also declared a national holiday in solidarity with Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.

Because the suspect was Brazilian, The Guardian reported that it had sent shockwaves throughout South America, as many in Brazil have been afraid that the right-wing extremist rhetoric of President Jair Bolsonaro might have inspired the attack on the Peronist vice president.

Bolsonaro has infamously called on supporters to "machine gun" leftist opponents in 2018, and this rhetoric may have inspired the attacker, as De Kirchner is allied with a stern leftist Alberto Fernandez.

Investigations are ongoing. Authorities have not yet released much information.

Argentina's Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner in Hot Water for Corruption

While she was lucky that the gun aimed at her head did not fire, the vice president is currently facing plenty of legal troubles linked to shady deals which have transpired during her time as president of Argentina.

Prosecutor Diego Luciani described her actions as "the biggest corruption maneuver that this country has ever known." This was in reference to the alleged irregularities in the awarding and overpricing of public works project tenders.

Many government contracts were reportedly awarded to close friends and allies of then-president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, with her close friend and family ally Lazaro Baez already being convicted.

The assassination attempt also came as Fernandez has been accused of threatening Luciani in a recent interview. Fernandez said he hoped the prosecutor leading the corruption trial against his vice president does not kill himself like what happened to the other prosecutor who investigated her.

While the administration said that prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who was in the middle of investigating then-president De Kirchner, committed suicide, many in the opposition still believe he was killed.

If found guilty, the vice president could be sent to prison for 12 years.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Man Points Gun at Argentinian Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner - From Guardian News