Mall San Pedro Filled
With Panic and Terror
The noise of the
bustling mall as cash
registers hummer, people
strolled and cell phone
conversations all paled
to the noise of a gun
firing in the area of
the bar known as Fusión,
when a man pulled his
gun and fired on
another.
The incident took placed
on Friday afternoon, 26
year old Steven Chacón
Soto, was shot in the
stomach and thorax, by a
what witnesses say was a
"black" man.
while Chacón is
recovering from his
wounds, police are
investigating the case
of a man who they know
nothing of.
Critics are blaming the
mall management or the
lack of security.
Witnesses say they heard
shots being fired as
chaos took over, people
fleeing in all
directions, though not
knowing the why or
where.
Some 450.000 people
visit the San Pedro
Mall, located east of
San José, and with six
difference entrance
points, security is
complicated. In
addition, the security
guards are not armed.
According to the
statistics by the
Organismo de
Investigación Judicial (OIJ),
405 people have been
assaulted in the mall
during the last three
years; 255 of which were
threatened by a firearm
and 55 with a knife.
Many visitors to the
mall, as well as
employees in the shops,
say that the lack of
security makes them
vulnerable and that the
security guards should
be armed.
Police are investigating
that the shooting was
racially motivated.
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