Rio de Janeiro, May 19 (EFE).– Brazilian police are investigating the murder of investigative reporter Evany Jose Metzker, who was found decapitated earlier this week in the town of Padre Paraiso, in Minas Gerais state, authorities said Tuesday.

Commissioner Fabricia Nunes, who is in charge of the case, is pursuing two investigative lines, that it was either a crime of passion or that it was carried out for “political” reasons, the Minas Gerais Civil Police said in a communique.

Metzker’s half-naked body was found with his hands tied in a rural part of Padre Paraiso, 560 km (347 mi.) northeast of

, the state capital, according to what the Militarized Police told local media outlets.

The man’s head was found several hours later about 100 yards from the body, which was in an advanced state of decomposition, according to the same source.

Metzker, 67, wrote an investigative reporting blog called Coruja do Vale, which published news of crime and corruption, along with critical articles about politicians in the Valle del Jequitinhonha region, a poor rural area of northeast Minas Gerais.

Relatives of the journalist said that he disappeared last Wednesday, the date of his last blog posting.

The Minas Gerais journalists union demanded in a statement on its Facebook page that the crime be investigated “rigorously and quickly.”

“The union hopes that this is not another case of violence against professional journalists, which is growing all over Brazil. Crimes of this kind are an attack on freedom of expression and the right to information,” the union said. EFE