An 18-year-old school student was shot in the leg outside a service station in the city of Rosario on Tuesday night. He was part of a group of 40 students on their way to Córdoba for a school trip. 

The group were caught in the crossfire as gunmen shot up a service station and left a threat for a prosecutor investigating the drug trafficking gang, Los Monos.

The incident occured just after 23.30 at the YPF service station on the corner of Rondeau Boulevard and Marull Street, in Rosario. Two suspects on a motorbike in the area were arrested.

The wounded student was part of a group from the Juan Bautista Alberdi secondary school who were about to board a bus when they were caught in the middle of the attack. 

The attackers also left a threat for Prosecutor Matías Edery, who is investigating the Rosario organized crime gang Los Monos. The contents of the message have not been released, but sources in the police and judiciary said that it also mentioned a member of the gang who has been charged with extortion.

The student suffered a bullet wound in his buttock. He was immediately taken to the Hospital de Emergencias Clemente Álvarez. He remains in hospital, but his life is not in danger. 

The case is being investigated by the Rosario prosecutor’s special unit for shootings. 

The shooting comes amid an increase in violent crime related to narcos gangs in the city of Rosario. In March, President Alberto Fernández announced that he would send more police to the city, bringing the force’s numbers to 1400, in order to clamp down on growing organized crime in the area. 

His announcement came shortly after an incident in which four children were shot, killing 12-year-old Máximo Jérez,, and the supermarket owned by footballer Messi’s in-laws was shot at. 

-Télam/Herald