16 people were shot on Saturday morning within a two hour span and the aftershocks from the crime are still reverberating in this shaken city. Police have charged three and arrested one more last night. Jacqueline Godwin has the latest.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
The wanted poster had only been issued some eight hours when police caught one of the three young men being sought in connection with two separate murders and attempted murder. Twenty two year old Leroy Ramsey was captured on Monday night in Belize City. Leroy Ramsey is the gunman accused of shooting sixteen year old Clinton Broaster. The two reportedly had a previous misunderstanding but authorities believe the incident is connected to the two previous gang shootings that occurred earlier that Saturday morning at the Putt Putt Bar and Grill and the Belcan Bridge.
Nineteen year old Deandra Zetina, a fourth form student of St. Michael’s College who was on her first work day at the Putt Putt Bar and Grill where she was a bartender. Today the victim’s sixty seven year old grandmother Clarine
Young appealed to the accused Jason King and Charles Moss to help the police find all those who were responsible for her granddaughter’s death. According to the family Deandra who suffered from sickle anemia lost both of her parents and worked on the weekends to make money to help put herself through school.
Clarine Young, Grandmother of Murder Victim
“To come out and speak the truth, well who set it up or which in you will not know or he will not tell you who set it up but if he have heart and mind to see that a young girl, innocent girl, she no bother with nobody, she no do nobody nothing. She just work to help out herself and thing. Maybe she wanted to pay her school fees, she wants to buy her little thing and her life just taken away, no man he has to say something.”
It is not the first time that the family has lost a loved one to the senseless shootings.
Clarine Young,
“One of my cousins, a little young boy, died the same way and nobody know, nobody no talk, nobody no see, some body must see, somebody must know. So something has to be done, they have to make a change especially like they say they want change then change, not for the worse - we want change for the better.”
The second shooting incident on Belcan Bridge took the life of another young woman seventeen year old Michelle Cattouse. While both females did not know
each other they were both students and shared many things in common. Michelle Cattouse had just started attending Nazarene High School and Deandra Zetina was looking to graduate from St. Michael’s College. Both young women are described as quiet and friendly and loved to listen to music and dance.
Indira Adolphus, Sister of murder victim
“She write it, she write it down in her book that she had goals for herself, what she wanted to do with her life you know this year so that she could have turned around.”
Clarine Young,
“And I am tired of hearing this one get dead, this one get dead and the next one get dead sake of this crime and violence. We get tired of that so something must be done if they have to turn and hang those people.”
Police say the shootings were the result of gang violence between George Street Crew and Back A Town. The police high command in a press conference on Monday stated that work is being done to address the situation even if it means going after their own.
Gerald Westby, Police Commissioner
“Yes from time to time we do get allegations that police officers do collude with these gangs and drugs and whenever they are found they will be dealt with but until we get something substantive then we cannot readily deal with them but we are aware from an internal perspective who are these policemen and once we find something we will nail them.”
Since the start of 2008, eight persons have been killed in Belize City. In connection with two of those homicides police continue to look for eighteen year old Lindon Flowers in connection with the murder of Alfred Tillett and a wanted poster of Hubert Faber has been issued in connection to the murder of Jeremy Gibson.
ACP Allen Whylie, Commander - Eastern Division
“We have been making diligent efforts in locating these persons, we have not been able so far but we are confident that with the continue public support and the information reaching us, it is just a matter of before we will have these persons in our custody.”
In the meantime residents in the affected areas are appealing to the respective authorities to make their neighborhoods a safer place to live. Jacqueline Godwin for 7NEWS.
Police say they continue to follow leads into the shooting death of Jason Munnings but so far have made no arrests. If you can assist the police in any of the investigations contact the nearest police station or Crime Stoppers at 0–800-922-8477.
