The 23 year-old was found in a parked truck alongside two other victims, one said to be a relative of Gonzalez, with all three having been reportedly murdered execution-style.
Gonzalez, known for knocking down two-weight world champion Carl Frampton twice the first round of their meeting in 2015, the Jalisco-born fighter had struggled since eventually losing out on points to the Irishman in their Premier Boxing Champions encounter.
A subsequent loss to Karim Guerfi was followed up by a draw with Hector Bobadilla when Gonzalez challenged for the vacant WBC FECOMBOX super-bantamweight belt as recently as October.
Frampton led tributes to Gonzalez Jr. after the shocking news spread of the young boxers’ death.
“Just hearing the tragic news about Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. One of the nicest guys I’ve shared a ring with. RIP Champ,” Frampton said on his social media account, whilst his wife added: “Absolutely heartbreaking news about the passing of Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. Spoke at length with him in El Paso about our families. So sad.”
An investigation into Gonzalez’s passing is now under way in Mexico.
