Seville actress and singer Encarnita Polo died on Friday at the age of 86 in her Avila mansion, where she had been hospitalized. According to the first signs, she had been strangled. Officials from the Government Assistance Mission confirmed to EFE that the alleged perpetrator, a man in his 80s who also resided at the centre, is in police custody at the hospital’s psychiatric centre.
The man had previously shown no signs of aggression at the residence, but under the circumstances he will remain in police custody until he can stand trial. The autonomous government of Castile and León asked about the Decanos de Ávila mansion where the couple lived, but said it could not provide any information because it was a weekend.
Police reported this Friday that a fatal accident occurred at a residence which is being investigated by the Regional Brigade of the Judicial Police. Investigators said Encarnita Polo was the victim and suggested another resident attacked her and strangled her to death.
Encarnita Polo was born on January 22, 1939 into a large family in Seville, but grew up in Barcelona, where her mother moved after her father’s death. There, with the help of dancer Antonio Marin, he began to enter the world of singing. He was one of the most important figures in pop music and copla in the 60s and 70s, with his famous and triumphant songs. Paco, paco, paco.
His daughter, Raquel Weitzman Polo, informed friends of his death and asked for respect and privacy for the family at this sensitive time. “It is with great pain that I wish to share with you that my mother, Encarnita Polo, passed away in Avila, where we lived and where we spent the last years of our lives surrounded by love,” Weitzman wrote in a message to her loved ones. He added: “To many, she was an unforgettable singer and actress, a pioneer of flamenco pop whose voice and personality influenced generations. But to me, she was above all a mother. A strong, joyful woman with a unique character.”
In the same message, Polo’s daughter asked for the family’s respect and privacy and said she would not make a public statement or give interviews. “I need to spend this time of mourning quietly and peacefully, close to those who loved her.” In her later years, Encarnita Polo lived away from the media and was undergoing treatment for cancer. Sources close to the family said Polo will be buried in Avila after the wake where the Seville artist’s body was discovered.
