A Leamington man has been killed in an attempted car-jacking on a highway in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Brazilian media reports say Dean Tiessen was travelling with a friend, Paul Carver, when he was fatally shot on Saturday, but the circumstances around the incident remain unclear.

Globo media and other outlets say he had been in Brazil since November on a business trip for his company, New Energy Farms, and had reportedly been attending events surrounding agro-business.

The New Energy Farms website lists Tiessen as the company's president and highlights his receipt of the Premier's Award for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence in 2010.

Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada has released a statement confirming a Canadian died in Brazil, but few other details.

A spokesperson said "Canadian consular officials in Sao Paolo and Ottawa are providing consular assistance to the family and friends and are in contact with the local authorities."

Family and friends react to death

The death has come as a shock to family and friends. Dean Tiessen's brother did not wish to speak on camera but tells CTV News he was a loving father and husband, and the whole family is trying to come to grips with what happened.

Linda Tiessen, a family friend, says "To be saddened is an understatement at this time...Many of us grew up with Dean, we saw him grow up from a small boy, to a young man, to a student, then to a father and now a very successful businessman."

She calls his death a tremendous loss and says many will miss him.

Leamington Mayor John Paterson recently toured the Dean Tiessen's farm and says his death is a loss, not only to his family and friends, but also to the entire area.

"It's just a loss of another key person in our community. The Tiessen family is huge, the Mennonite community is huge and I'm sure this is going to have a ripple effect, you know, it's such a loss."

At this time it's not clear when Dean Tiessen's body will be flown back to Canada and funeral arrangements are still being finalized.

Tiessen is survived by his wife and four young children.

With files from The Canadian Press