At least 13 people die asphyxiated in a police operation to close a nightclub in Peru

An unconscious person lies on a van after the incident at a restobar in Lima, Peru.Reuters

At least thirteen people have died asphyxiated in Lima, the capital of Peru, during a police operation to break up a party organized in a nightclub that violated the confinement measures imposed by the authorities to stop the spread of covid-19. The police arrived at the restobar to disperse the concentrated people and, being surprised, the attendees tried to escape through the only entrance door of the premises, being trapped between the entrance and an adjoining staircase, which caused crushing, suffocation and the death of some of them. Six other people have been injured in the episode.

“On Saturday, August 22, at 9:00 p.m., National Police personnel were alerted that a party was being held at the Thomas Restobar store, in Los Olivos, with the attendance of approximately 120 people. As a result of these events, 13 people who are in the process of being identified lost their lives, ”the Ministry of the Interior reported in a statement posted on its Twitter account.

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The Ministry has remarked that in the actions that were carried out to suspend the illegal meeting, "no type of weapon or tear gas bomb" was used, as some witnesses affirm. Likewise, it was reported that three assistants have been injured and also three policemen, who tried to help those who were trapped.

A total of 23 people are provisionally detained during the beginning of the investigations. Those responsible for the party could face up to 35 years in prison. "If we are talking about a simple homicide, the penalties go up to 20 years, but if we are talking about a murder, they can go up to 35 years in prison. We are not talking about light penalties, but the most serious in the system, ”explained criminal lawyer Carlos Caro in an interview with the RPP station.

The Public Ministry of Peru has condemned the loss of life due to the “criminal irresponsibility of an unscrupulous businessman” and initiated an immediate investigation to identify those responsible for the organization of the meeting and other perpetrators discovered in the course of the investigations .

For her part, the Minister of Women, Rosario Sasieta, stated: "This should never have happened, because some businessmen who, with a profit motive, brought together 120 boys and that greed has caused the death of these young people." She also recalled that there was no permission to operate and much less to hold parties or events, so she has called on young people not to attend these types of events.