This morning at 5:20 a.m. police responded to a report of a man being shot in Sabana Sur, a residential neighborhood on the southern side of San José’s La Sabana Metropolitan Park.

The man, identified as Michael Chain Caspi (48) and of Israeli nationality, was here on one of his occasional visits to the country, said Judicial Investigative Police (OIJ) in a press conference this morning.

According to initial reports, Caspi was leaving an apartment building in Sabana Sur to get in the car of someone waiting for him, when, as he was stepping out of the front gate of the building he was surrounded by at least 3 suspects, shot four times in the head and torso, and stripped of some of his belongings.

Neighbors who heard the gunshots called 9-1-1 to file a report.

The homicide is being treated as an assault. The suspects apparently fled in a vehicle, whose description is still unknown, towards the southern part of the city.

Caspi visited the country on a regular basis, though apparently was not a Costa Rican resident. He did some real estate brokerage while here, and also taught tennis classes, said police.

He died in front of the building from the bullet wounds, which appeared to be from a .38mm pistol, said police.

Police are requesting anybody with any pertinent information come forward to aid in the investigation of the case.

In the meantime, police are combing the neighborhood interviewing witnesses and collecting evidence, and are also contacting Caspi’s real estate clients to see if they can help clarify anything related to the tragic incident.