BRIEFS. crime

Attempted rape in parque omar reported

A young American woman reported being the victim of an attempted rape in Parque Omar last Sunday, May 18 at 10:30 p.m., according to the Servicio de Protección Institucional (SPI), the agency in charge of park security.

The victim stated that "a man of dark complexion, 1.7 meters tall tried to rape her at the exit to Avenida de La India," the SPI confirmed.

The agency would not offer further information about incidents of violence or attempted violence in the park, which covers an area of 56.5 hectares in the San Francisco neighborhood. For "security reasons," authorities refrained from revealing the number of guards in the park as well.

However, it is believed that at least three women have been the objects of aggression by minors in the park in recent weeks. The youths lie in wait in for their victims in isolated areas which, according to one security agent, are forested and difficult to police. The problem, he said, is that "We are very few," and "to do the job well" requires 10 agents for every 100 people. Some 25,000 people visit the park monthly, according to its registry.

The office of the President of Panama issued a statement saying that "There is no cause for alarm, but there have in fact been cases of aggression in Parque Omar recently."