23. She declared that she began shouting: "Please don't kill him. He's not a thief." She said that the policeman answered "you cunt get out of here, if not we'll kill you, too" and then pushed her. She added that that officer then went up to Mr. Huacón, who “took another bullet which entered his chin and came out of his left cheek, completely disfiguring his face."16 24. Ms. Delgado testified as follows: My neighbor (...) got out of the taxi with his hands up and there they shot him because blood immediately came out from his right leg, and he was about to faint but kept walking towards the policemen, offering them his hand as if imploring them for help. Because of what I was seeing, I shouted (...) I heard another gunshot; from the balcony I could see them taking my neighbor to a (...) health post.17 25. For his part, officer Mosquera maintained that: JOSE CARBO (...) fired several shots at the taxi cab. I saw the taxi driver get out and try to escape, and the policeman shot at him again, I don't know how many times.18 26. Officers Torres and Moya declared that they heard several shots, but could not say how many, nor who fired them as they were too far away from the scene of what happened.19 27. As regards what happened after Mr. Huacón was shot, Ms. Chancay declared that she had seen the dead body of Mercedes Salazar, apparently killed by a shot to the back of her neck fired by police as they chased after the vehicle. 20 The petitioner stated that officer Carbo "put his revolver through the back window of the taxi and fired two more shots to the heart of the already inert body of Mercedes."21 28. The IACHR takes note of a statement to the media by CTG Officer Pedro Espinoza, who said that: One of the police officers, with his weapon drawn, went up to where the taxi had parked and from the driver seat side began shooting point blank at the persons inside the taxi.22 29. According to Ms. Delgado, several neighbors went to see what had happened after hearing the shots. She maintained that she heard members of the CTG planning to take away Mr. Huacón's vehicle. She added that, because of that, the neighbors had taken the tires off the vehicle and had chained them to the iron bars of a store.23 30. According to officer Mosquera, after what happened: JOSE CARBO took the motorbike and started the engine so brusquely that I barely had to time to get on it (...) taking the same route followed during the chase (...) My colleague, JOSE CARBO and I got to a fuel station and the policeman (...) said to me (...) WE HAD BETTER WASH OUR PISTOLS, so that (...) CARBO proceeded to wash the two pistols, that is to say, both his and mine in that fuel station (...) Then we joined Messrs. VICTOR RAMOS and CARLOS TORRES who were on the other motorbike (...) saying (...) that we should file a report on what had happed, whereby police officer JOSE CARBO [said that] he had got through other predicaments and we continued on our rounds.24 Statement by Mery del Pilar Chancay Quimis to the National Police on April 3, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 17 Statement by Deisy Trinidad Delgado Vergara to the Ecuadorian National Police on April 3, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 18 Statement by Carlos Rolando Mosquera Cachaguay to the Ecuadorian National Police on April 2, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 19 Statement by Carlos Julio Torres Reyes to the Ecuadorian National Police on April 3, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. Statement by Víctor Hugo Ramos Moya to the National Police of Ecuador on April 2, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 20 Statement by Mery del Pilar Chancay Quimis to the National Police on April 3, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 21 Petitioners' initial petition of October 15, 2002. 22 Testimony by Espinoza to the "24 Hours" program. Attached to the writ of July 8, 2004. 23 Statement by Deisy Trinidad Delgado Vergara to the Ecuadorian National Police on April 3, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 24 Statement by Carlos Rolando Mosquera Cachaguay to the Ecuadorian National Police on April 2, 1997. Attached to the petitioner's initial petition of October 15, 2002. 16 4