One Police Officer Killed, Four Soldiers Wounded in Ongoing Opposition Protests

A police officer in Merida was reportedly shot dead, while four national guard soldiers were wounded in Caracas. 

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Caracas, June 14, 2017 (venezuelanalysis.com) – A police officer was shot dead and four National Guard soldiers wounded Tuesday, when the Venezuelan opposition’s latest round of protests turned deadly.

Merida state Governor Alexis Ramirez confirmed that local police supervisor Douglas Acevedo Sánchez, 41, died after being shot in the neck when masked opposition youths allegedly opened fire.  

The shooting took place as members of security forces attempted to safeguard civilians and keep roads open amid a “sit-in” or roadblock called by opposition sectors for Tuesday, the governor reported. 

“He was hit in the neck and transferred to the University Hospital of the Andes, where he died a few hours later,” Ramirez told state television channel VTV. 

Three other people were also injured in the fray, including two passersby shot in the abdomen and chest, and another police officer who was shot in the leg. 

The Public Prosecution has assigned a district attorney to investigate Acevedo’s death.

Meanwhile, four national guard soldiers were wounded in El Paraiso, Caracas, confirmed Justice Minister Nestor Reverol. 

Captain Chourio Sanchez and sergeants Diaz José, Garcia Harold, and Gomez Carlos were shot as they attempted to disperse roadblocks set up by hooded opposition militants who call themselves “The Resistance”. 

Reverol shared photos on Twitter of several heavily armed protesters who reportedly fired at security forces. He warned that anybody who attacked soldiers “would feel the full weight of the law”.  

Twenty three people were later detained in connection to the attack during a raid on the nearby Los Verdes apartment block, carried out by the GNB and the intelligence services SEBIN. Authorities said they discovered a revolver, a shotgun, and home-made explosives during the search. 

One of the residents also reported on social media that their pet dog had to be euthanised after being shot by security personnel during the raid.  

At least 80 people have been killed since the opposition first took to the streets at the beginning of April in protests aimed at removing the government of Nicolas Maduro. The fatalities include at least 11 people killed by security forces and 22 killed in opposition-led violence. Twenty-eight of the deaths are still unaccounted for.