A Shooting

Early yesterday afternoon Missy and I were in our apartment when we started hearing a lot of sirens close to our house. We did not find out until today that yesterday a policeman was shot about six blocks from our house. Evidently there have been two guys riding around our area on a motorcycle and robbing people. Yesterday they had robbed a vendor, and the vendor called 911 as soon as they had left. Two cops on a motorcycle received the call and came across the suspects. The cops gave chase, and the guys on the motorcycle pulled over. A twenty-four year old policeman started walking up to the guys on the bike, and one of them pulled out a 12 gauge shotgun and shot the cop point blank three times. The thieves got away, although the other police did shoot at them.

This police station is just two blocks from our house, and we have felt pretty safe because of the police presence (even though we have to call a completely different police station who will then radio this station in case of an emergency, since this station has no telephone). I talked with one of the officers today, and he said that our neighborhood is becoming more dangerous because a lot of Columbians and and Nicaraguans are moving into the area. He also told me that the policeman who was shot lost one of his lungs and is in critical condition. According to this article in a local newspaper, the suspects have been identified and the authorities are looking for them.