A construction businessman and former candidate for mayor was shot and killed on Saturday in Parramos, a town in the Guatemalan department of Chimaltenango.

The victim, 53-year-old José Elías Ramírez Andrés, was well known in the region for running Constructora D&D Ramírez Hernández, a company that handled road work and public construction projects for local governments. A second person, 38-year-old Ana Delfina Andrés Grande, also died in the shooting.

According to public records, Ramírez’s company received about Q428 million in contracts (roughly $55 million USD) between 2014 and 2025. Most of the work involved municipal road repairs and infrastructure projects. The firm was especially active between 2018 and 2020, when it landed some of its largest deals.

Ramírez was also a civil engineer and previously ran for mayor of El Tejar, a nearby city.

The shooting took place near the central park area of Parramos. Local authorities have not released information on a motive, and no arrests have been reported so far.

The case remains under investigation.