Originally published on September 16, 2013 <br /><br />Six people died and two others were injured on Sunday morning following a stampede in a Bogota nightclub, according to police.<br /><br />Commander of the Bogota Metropolitan Police, General Luis Martinez, confirmed that five women and one man had died from apparent asphyxiation.<br /><br />The injured were taken to hospitals near the bar, police said.<br /><br />Reports said that police were called to the "Night Club" bar at around 3am Sunday after reports of a disturbance.<br /><br />Police arrived but could not gain entrance and the reportedly threw tear gas or pepper spray inside in an attempt to restore order.<br /><br />The release of the gas caused panic and led to a stampede as the patrons rushed toward the exit.<br /><br />Several witnesses said that the police used excessive force in reimposing order, which added to the chaos.<br /><br />This included tasers while others said that police beat patrons as they attempted to escape the bar following the release of the gas.<br /><br />About 180 people were in the bar, which has a capacity of just 30, at the time of the incident, according to local media.<br /><br />Following the deaths police launched an investigation into the incident and have suspended two officers involved.<br /><br />The bar had already been closed down on four previous occasions because it was not authorized to operate late at night.<br /><br />The Mayor of Bogota Gustavo Petro criticized the police tactics on Twitter.<br /><br />"How can it be that a police intervention kills more people than if they had not intervened. The problem lies in the method of intervention," he wrote.<br /><br />--------------------------------------------------------<br /><br />TomoNews is your daily source for top animated news. We've combined animation and video footage with a snarky personality to bring you the biggest and best stories from around the world.<br /><br />For news that's fun and never boring, visit our channel:<br />https://www.youtube.com/user/TomoNewsUS<br /><br />Subscribe to stay updated on all the top stories:<br />http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=TomoNewsUS<br /><br />Stay connected with us here:<br />Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TomoNewsUS<br />Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS<br />Google+ http://gplus.to/TomoNewsUS
