Carlos Monzon Facing a Murder Charge

Carlos Monzon, former world middleweight champion, will be tried for the murder of his estranged wife, court officials in Mar Del Plata, Argentina, said.

Monzon, 45, was placed under arrest at a maximum security jail after a judge declared him virtually responsible for the death of former Uruguayan-born model Alicia Muniz, his third wife. The couple were separated two years ago.

Muniz, 33, died Sunday when she fell from a balcony after an argument with Monzon, who also fell from the balcony and suffered minor injuries.

Monzon, who won the middleweight title in 1970 and successfully defended it 13 times, admitted in statements to the judge that he had hit Muniz. He claimed she threw herself from the balcony and he had fallen trying to stop her.

A separate court report said that Monzon had been drinking.