An armed man was shot dead by Tourism Police officers in the Caribbean region of Costa Rica after a foot pursuit in a mountainous forest. According to a report by Evelin Andino Espinoza of daily tabloid Diario Extra, Tourism Police officers assigned to Punta Uva of Manzanillo, province of Limon, were in pursuit of various armed suspects when one of them suddenly fired multiple times. The officers immediately took cover and returned fire; despite the thick vegetation and limited visibility, the officers were successful in neutralizing the suspect.

 

The man is believed to have been part of a criminal gang that targeted robbery victims in the area. This group is reportedly to have been involved in nearly 30 robberies, and they preyed upon residents and visitors; in fact, the Tourism Police officers initiated the foot chase thanks to information provided by five North American tourists who were ambushed and robbed in their hotel. After the tourists reported the robbery, officers deployed a security perimeter across Punta Uva until they sighted the armed suspects.

 

Neighbors in Punta Uva told Diario Extra that they felt threatened by this gang and were afraid to report crimes for fear of violent reprisal. Such was not the feeling among the five North American tourists who were robbed earlier this week; they immediately reported the incident and now the community is confident that the rest of the gang will be apprehended.

 

As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star:

 

The men and women of the Tourism Police special unit of Fuerza Publica are sometimes called “Baywatch Cops” by their partners in blue. This is a playful tease that comes from the fact that Tourism Police officers are often seen patrolling on bicycles and jovially interacting with backpackers looking for the next bus to La Fortuna, or surfers whose belongings left on the beach disappear. Still, they also carry regulation weapons and are trained in special tactics to combat crime. These are the members of the Tourism Police of Costa Rica, a special unit of Fuerza Publica (the national police force), who recently inaugurated a new Caribbean base of operations.