GANG members attacked two buses in El Salvador, killing 14, to “prove something” to authorities cracking down on crime, police believe.
In the first attack on the outskirts of the capital, San Salvador, arsonists thought to be members of the Mara 18 gang set fire to a minibus, killing 11 passengers, said Roberto Villalobos, a top commissioner with the national civil police.
In the second incident, suspected Mara 18 members boarded a public bus in the same area and opened fire on its passengers, killing an adult and two girls, aged seven and nine.
Mr Villalobos said “there are no clear motives” for the attacks.
“It seems that the gang wanted to prove something to authorities, for the actions being taken against gangs and crime,” Mr Villalobos said.
Since late last year the government of President Mauricio Funes has cracked down on violent gangs in the country, sending a 4,000-strong contingent of troops onto the streets to reinforce police in providing security.
El Salvador is currently suffering a brutal gang culture that leaves on average some 13 people murdered each day, along with dozens of cases of armed robbery.
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