Deadly shooting at a Chilean Christmas fair: at least one dead and six injured

A deadly shooting took place this Tuesday in the Plaza de Maipú, one of the most populous communes in Chile. A Christmas fair is located there where many people made their end-of-year purchases. One person has died and six others were injured.

The incident in question occurred at the intersection between Pajaritos and Cinco de Abril Avenue, when attackers opened fire on passersby. “We had to drop to the ground. I work with my whole family, even my 13-year-old son. The gunshot wounded fell beside us. Pure noise and pure bullets, they looked like fireworks. The gunshot wounded were taken away in private cars, the ambulance never arrived. There was a sea of ​​people, imagine that there were many people doing their shopping in the square ”, said a witness, who did not identify himself but is a tenant of one of the stalls in the place.

Lieutenant Colonel Manuel Hevia Navarrete, a Carabineros agent found the scene, said: “There were 10 shots, of which some unfortunately hit seven people who were injured and one of them, we are in a position to say, was killed ”, declared.

The shooting occurred after 5:00 p.m. and according to witnesses, white vehicle approached slowing down to the place. When they were in front of where the bulk of commercial establishments selling Christmas products were located, they began to shoot with the firearm. Some witnesses maintain that the weapon resembled a machine gun.

Various authorities arrived at the place, among them, the mayor of Maipú, Cathy Barriga, who blamed the Government for the level of violence registered in recent times. “We cannot be reactive. The shootings are being seen every day and here there has been no provision by the undersecretary of crime prevention. Here I have the letters that I have sent and I have not been taken into account. We can’t go on like this. That I have to do? Ask the President for an audience? He demanded.

The latest information provided by the Prosecutor’s Office, to whom all the antecedents have been reported, indicate that it was two individuals who fired the shots. In total, ten downloads reached seven people, all visitors to the Christmas fair located in the Plaza de Maipú. Police continue to search for those responsible with a large deployment that includes police vehicles, helicopters and personnel on the ground. As for the only fatal victim, it was confirmed that it is a 58-year-old woman and that she arrived dead at the hospital to which she was transferred. It would be a client who was doing Christmas shopping, The other four wounded are in Hospital El Carmen in the same commune, with a reserved diagnosis.

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A Christmas fair is the scene of violent crimes in a popular neighborhood in Chile