Saturday, October 23, 2010

Another Tragedy: Birthday Party Ends With 13 Killed, 20 Wounded

A birthday party for Francisco Lopez, 14, at his home, ended tragically when gunmen burst into the house and began shooting last night at about 10:55 p.m. in Horizontes del Sur. When it was over his mother was dead, along with 12 other persons, most of them adolescents. Twenty persons were wounded, three of them critically. Witnesses said the gunmen arrived in three or four vehicles and they were described as being young, between the ages of 16 and 21. (For story in Diario click here) The house is in a modest middle class neighborhood.

Governor Duarte promised this afternoon in a statement followed by a press conference to clarify the circumstances of the massacre, he visited the hospital this afternoon where the injured victims were taken. He promised not to pass on his responsibilities to others, a veiled criticism of the previous governor. Governor Duarte also did not discount the possibility that U.S. experts might assist in the investigation.

El Fronterizo reports this afternoon (click here) that one theory about the motive for the massacre is that gunmen were searching for a person nicknamed El Raton (The Rat).

On January 31 of this year a similar massacre of adolescents ocurred in Villas de Salvarcar.

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