17 killed in stampede after brawl at crowded Caracas club

CARACAS, Venezuela — Seventeen people were killed at a crowded nightclub in Venezuela’s capital Saturday after a tear gas device exploded during a brawl and triggered a desperate stampede among hundreds gathered for a graduation celebration, government officials said.

Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said the incident at the “Los Cotorros” club in the middle-class neighborhood of El Paraiso left eight minors dead and five injured. Eight people were detained, including two teens believed responsible for setting off the tear gas canister.

Family members wept and embraced one another after identifying the remains of their loved ones at a nearby hospital.

Relatives of those inside the club said the party was a celebration for the graduating class of several different high schools.

Yoanna Aponte said her 16-year-old cousin died after suffering cranial trauma when she tried to escape and was crushed by the stampede.

“She fell to the ground,” she said between wails, “and all the kids stumbled over her.”

More than 500 people were believed to be inside the club when the fight broke out. Julio Cesar Perdomo said his injured son told him the tear gas was launched from inside a bathroom and that partygoers tried to flee but found the club’s door closed.

“The kids couldn’t leave,” Perdomo said.

Police have detained the owner of the club for “not guaranteeing adequate supervision and preventing the entry of any type of weapon.” No information on the owner’s name, exact charges or current whereabouts was immediately provided.