Ambassador Assassinated on Coruscant
Desrini District — The Coruscant Security Force (CSF) has announced that it will collaborate with the New Republic Security Force in an investigation into the assassination, this week, of Whilm Fallon, Coruscant's ambassador to the Gaulus Sector. The ambassador was at the residence of a colleague in the Desrini District when it came under missile attack from a small cruiser, identified as a VT-49 Decimator, which evaded the pursuit of CSF starfighters and escaped the planet. The attack killed Ambassador Fallon, his colleague, and several others at the residence and in an adjacent suite. The CSF referred to the incident as "a tragic, but rare failure to protect our public officials." The motive of the assassination is not clear, nor is the perpetrator. The cruiser believed responsible for the incident was pursued by a squadron of A-wing starfighters, which damaged the craft but were unable to stop it. The New Republic Security Force will assist the CSF to find the craft, according to today's announcement. The two agencies have appealed to New Republic governments, businesses, and private vessels and individuals to watch for a damaged VT-49 Decimator cruiser. It is believed to have been sufficiently damaged that authorities are confining their search to the Core Worlds, where the vessel is likely to seek needed repairs.
Sources tell The Coruscant Journal that the CSF also appealed to the New Republic Security Force for assistance in the investigation because it is believed that the assassination of Ambassador Fallon is related to a number of other, unusual incidents on Coruscant on the same evening; namely, the burning of the Church of the Golden Nerf, also in the Desrini District, and the storming of a private compound in the Business District that resulted in the killing of local magnate and suspected slaver Malcolm Rhees. The killing of Mr. Rhees and his bodyguards was said to be similar in method and manner to an event in Coruscant's underlevels last week in which, according to one witness, a Jedi was responsible for the murder of an accountant and his guards.
The Coruscant Journal is informed by a source within the Coruscant Security Force that these incidents are believed to be related, and were possibly committed by the same person or persons. There was no information as to how or why, and neither the CSF or the New Republic Security Force would comment on the details of the case while it remained under investigation. The Jedi Academy has again denied any suggestion of responsibility, noting that the presence and the movements of all its students on Coruscant were accounted for at the time of last week's murder, Ambassador Fallon's assassination, and the evening's other events.
Coruscant, meanwhile, mourns the loss of its ambassador. "Whilm Fallon was a humble, compassionate man and a devoted public servant," read a statement from the office of Senator Gustav Emerest (Coruscant), "His death is a tremendous loss both to the people of Coruscant and those of the Gaulus Sector. He will be missed, and be assured, his killer will see justice."
