El Salvador footballer Alfredo Pacheco shot dead

El Salvador's most-capped player Alfredo Pacheco has been murdered, it has been announced.

The 33-year-old, who was banned from all footballing activity in 2013 for his part in match-fixing, was shot dead at a petrol station in Santa Ana in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Pacheco was chatting with friends when a man approached the group and fired several shots, killing Pacheco and injuring two others. The motivation of the crime is currently unknown, police said on Sunday.

El Salvador has one of the highest murder rates in the world, with 6,068 homicides reported in 2015 to date.

During his playing career, defender Pacheco earned 86 caps for his country and found the net seven times. He spent most of his club career with Salvadoran side FAS and also had a brief loan stint with MLS side New York Red Bulls in 2009.