6 January 2009 11:00 AM, PST | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news
Brazilian soap star Rodrigo Hilbert and his model/actress girlfriend Fernanda Lima tried in vain to save a German-born wine mogul who was killed in a hit-and-run boat accident on New Year's Eve.
Christian Wolffer - who owns New York's Wolffer Estate Vineyard - was struck as he swam off the coast of Paraty, Brazil on 31 December.
Hilbert, 24, and Lima, 33, saw Wolffer pleading for help, and dashed into the sea in a kayak to rescue him. They dragged him back to shore, but failed to revive him.
Cops are now investigating Wolffer's death, at the age of 70, as a murder.
A police spokesperson tells the New York Post, "It is a homicide and is being investigated as such."
Hilbert and Lima have a released a statement that reads, "We are saddened and shocked. It was a brutality. We did what we could."
