Horror in Wilde: Ten-year-old shot dead during shootout between police, muggers

Residents in Wilde, Avellaneda, took to the streets on Thursday night to protest the killing of a 10-year-old who was shot dead during a shootout between a policeman and motorcycle thieves.

Bastián Nehemías Escalante Montoya was rushed to hospital on Wednesday night after being shot twice as he was on his way back from football training with his mother. 

Caught up in crossfire between muggers and a plain-clothes policeman, he received two bullets to the back and thorax. 

Despite undergoing two operations at the  Hospital Finochietto in a desperate bid to save his life, the child lost his life.

Police sources informed the Noticias Argentinas news agency that two youngsters, aged 18 and 16, were apprehended in the vicinity as they were escaping.

According to a neighbour who observed the sequence of events, the shootout was between a plain-clothes policeman and thieves who were trying to steal the off-duty officer’s motorcycle.

The policeman defended himself and opened fire. It remains unclear if the bullets were discharged from his weapon or one welded by the robbers. 

“The police officer identified himself and started shooting, the criminals were fleeing the site, two of them crashed a vehicle driving by, still managing to speed away,” said the resident, who asked not to be identified. 

“Two of them were apprehended in the vicinity, one of age and the other one a minor,” they specified.

Local residents have complained about crime and a lack of security in the area and promptly staged a protest on Thursday night to demand action.

“We’re waiting for experts to examine the site and nobody is watching the scene. We’re outraged by police action,” one neighbour stated.

– TIMES/NA