And while the fire tearing through the heart of the city is a cultural happening that makes it more than just "news" – there is still much to report tonight. And it begins with violent crime. There are two murders that happened in the city: one occurred last night and the other this morning. We begin with the morning killing, where Leon Beeks and Marvin Reyes were at work – when they were attacked by gunmen. Jacqueline Godwin reports.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
Lucrecia Myvette was overcome with grief after she positively identified the latest murder victim as her common law husband twenty five year old Leon Beeks. Beeks had only been working two days at Slate Wood Works on Krooman Street when he was shot in the head as he sanded by this pile of lumber situated at the back of the compound. The police forensic team marked at least sixteen locations where nine-millimeter expended shells or fragments were recovered.
Initial investigations reveal that at around 9:20, Leon Beeks was in the company of three co-workers including Marvin Reyes in the back yard. Two armed masked young men on separate bicycles rode up to the front of the furniture shop, dropped their bikes on the street and ran through the building, past workers, heading to the back. The gunmen reportedly targeted only Leon Beeks and Marvin Reyes who were taken by surprise. Unable to escape, Beeks was shot once in the head and died on the spot.
Voice of Eyewitness,
“The men they came in through the entrance, put their bikes, and then they came in. Actually they faced the man who they killed. They faced him but they were masked.”
According to this eyewitness who did not wish to appear on camera Marvin Reyes tried to run away but was shot three times as he reached a fence at the back of the compound.
Voice of Eyewitness,
“I overheard a lot of gunshots because they were discharged very quickly and I saw two young men, one was over the fence and the other was behind the building and actually I was trying to duck because I felt so cold and scared. Actually all of them tried to run away and I saw Marvin behind the building but I didn’t know he was shot and actually just because I heard him telling the other young man for him to hurry take him to the hospital because they usually come to work in their own vehicle.”
ASP Bart Jones, Acting Police Press Officer
“The other person tried to run but he was pursued and shot in the shoulder. We know of one shot in the shoulder and we were just informed as well
that there may be another gunshot injury he had received after checking with the medical authorities. So he is undergoing treatment at this time, obviously we couldn’t get more details from him because he is being attended to and that is what we have on this at this time.”
Reyes is reportedly in a serious condition at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. The killers then ran back out of the building leaving behind a trail of evidence including this black woolen cap found in the middle of the street. The shooters reportedly rode on to Faber’s Road towards the Western Highway.
Milton Nag, Witness
“I just heard when they shot the man but when I got outside I saw the man that ran. He was running in the road and when he throw his cap, that is the only thing I heard and I saw.”
At the scene Lucrecia Myvette told 7NEWS that she does not know why her common law husband was killed but that he had become increasingly concerned about his safety.
Lucrecia Myvette, Common-law Wife of Murder Victim
“I feel like because he told me this morning that they were watching him so he felt somebody was watching him. He woke up and told me that he doesn’t feel to go to work and he feels that someone is watching him. Me and him were talking from one thing to the next and then one of the young men who worked with him came and called him because it is at my house he stays and sleep and everything. And they came and hollered for him and asked if he was going to work. He said he didn’t know because I was holding him down and didn’t want him to go. I told him not to go if he doesn’t want to go and he told me later he will see me and he went. They came and told me he got shot but I didn’t know he was dead.”
Voice of Eyewitness
“This is terrible though because if my baby was out here, a bullet could have just caught him because they started to discharge the gunshots so quickly. Everything happened so fast and the thing is that around here is mainly bush – you can hardly know if probably they went into the bush but if anybody is out there listening – please stop this because we have to try change. Belize is a very small country and we have to try change for good.”
7NEWS understands that Beeks had recently made a court appearance about the discovery of guns and ammunition. It is not certain if that is connected to the homicide or if it was the result of an ongoing feud between rival groups in one of the neighborhoods where Beeks was known to socialize.
Lucrecia Myvette,
“Well I don’t know about that because everybody knows that he is a cool and nice person and I won’t say he doesn’t get into trouble with the law. He has been in trouble more than one times but they say when you can’t catch harry you catch his shirt so maybe it is his friends. I can’t say.”
ASP Bart Jones,
“Certainly as you can see investigators are still on the scene so naturally we have not established that as yet and we are not going to speculate and say what we believe the motive to be or anything like that until the investigation leads otherwise. It is my understanding that they have not been working here for too long and so we are looking into that and probably associates of theirs and maybe who may have had any problems with them. So we are looking at that. That is where the investigation is going to lead to establish a motive.”
Voice of Eyewitness,
“This is so terrible because I knew something like this was going to happen because it is the first time I see those boys around here, they just started working like a week ago and this is so terrible.”
Police say they have no suspects but at this time are following some leads.
ASP Bart Jones,
“The Police Department looks very seriously at these shootings and even from before earlier shootings, I think right after the elections and the shootings that followed – we have remained on alert and even prior to the election and so we continue to operate.”
Jacqueline Godwin for 7NEWS.
Late word from the KHMH is that Marvin Reyes remains hospitalized in a serious condition. Our records show that in August 2007 Reyes better known Budda was charged for the attempted murder of Kareem Wright. At this time police cannot say if the two events are related. And as we told you there was another murder last night and we'll tell you about that one later on.
