A security guard has shot his ex-girlfriend dead in a shopping centre in the Colombian capital Bogota before turning the gun on himself, causing widespread panic as people fled for their lives.
The gunman has been named as security company worker Christian Camilo Rincon Diaz and he shot his 26-year-old girlfriend Erika Lugo dead. He reportedly survived the incident and is currently in hospital.
The incident took place at the packed and popular Unicentro Shopping Mall Bogota at around 5:15pm on Sunday, 14th May, which was Mother’s Day in Colombia.
Rincon Diaz reportedly went to Erika’s place of work at a pizzeria in the shopping centre, with the pair then seen arguing before he allegedly pulled the gun out and shot her, according to local media.
The first piece of footage shows Erika lying dead on the floor with blood coming out of her head. Rincon Diaz can be seen lying next to her.
The second piece of footage, filmed a few moments earlier by a different person, shows panicked shoppers taking cover under tables.
The woman filming can be heard saying “he killed her”, with the camera showing the killer standing over his victim’s body.
The shooter can then be seen putting the gun to his head, with the woman filming saying “he is going to kill himself”.
The camera then pans down as he is heard pulling the trigger and the woman filming can then be heard saying: “He killed himself. He killed himself!”.
The third piece of footage shows panicked shoppers running for their lives and heading for the exits as workers close the shop the person filming is in as a protective measure.
The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, said on social media: “I am very sorry for what happened in Unicentro: Femicide and suicide.”
But the attacker, who is understood to have had access to the firearm through his work at the security company, reportedly survived, with the police saying that he was taken to hospital and is receiving treatment. His condition has been described as “extremely delicate”.
The authorities are investigating the killing.
