Puebla (Mexico), Apr 17 (IANS/EFE): A journalist was murdered as he left a bank in Puebla, a city in central Mexico, officials said.

Alonso de la Colina Sordo, who was the host of a television show in the southern state of Guerrero until February, was gunned down Monday.

Guerrero is one of the state's most affected by drug-related violence in Mexico.

The 50-year-old journalist was shot near the heart outside a bank branch in a shopping center in Puebla.

The journalist "was approached in the shopping center's parking lot by a man", police chief Juan Luis Galan said.

The gunman "fired twice in the air to scare him and then he killed him", the police chief said.

Security guards administered first aid to the reporter, but he died a few minutes after being shot, investigators said.

Authorities have not determined whether the motive for the killing was robbery or it was related to De la Colina's reporting.

De la Colina, who hosted the "Hechos en Guerrero" news show, announced on the air Feb 15 that he was leaving to pursue new projects.