Female Gangster Arrested in Bombing

Firefighters rest after extinguishing a fire inside a bus caused by an explosion where five people died and 16 were injured in Guatemala City, Monday Jan. 3, 2011. The cause of the explosion is unknown. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) (AP2011)

Guatemalan police have arrested a twenty year-old woman accused of detonating a bomb on a passenger bus on Monday that killed six people.

National Police spokesman Donald González alleges 20-year-old Sonia Veliz Hernández left a bomb on the bus that was then detonated by cell phone.

González said Wednesday that Veliz belongs to the Mara 18 street gang, which has long been extorting bus companies in Guatemala. He says extortion was the likely motive behind the bombing but police are looking at other possibilities.

González says Veliz was arrested Tuesday based on a description from witnesses and other investigative leads.

The bombing occurred Monday on a highway that connects downtown Guatemala City with the northwestern part of the capital.

A spokeswoman for Roosevelt Hospital where the injured were taken said Tuesday that the death toll stood at six. Spokeswoman Berania Lopez says a 3-year-old boy was among those in serious condition.

The attack occurred on a highway that connects downtown Guatemala City with its northwestern neighborhoods.

Gangs have demanded money from bus drivers in the past and killed drivers who refused to pay. Rights activists say 60 drivers were killed in 2010.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.