On Thursday afternoon there was a murder in Cotton Tree – and less than 36 hours later, another Cayo village was reporting a homicide. This one happened in Georgeville and Jacqueline Godwin found out how a small dispute unfolded into a deadly attack. Here’s her story.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
This is the long blue jeans pants twenty four year old Georgeville resident Orlando Myers was wearing when he was stabbed. A blood trail leads from where the attack took place on the community’s basketball court to a back street where the victim finally collapsed after running fifty yards with a knife wound under the left arm pit. Orlando Myers, better known as Chippy, was rushed to the San Ignacio Hospital where he died. Eight hours later the main suspect twenty year old Esaline Gentle’s mother turned him into the police.
Sr. Supt. Paul Wade, Cayo District
“Our investigation so far is indicating that these two gentlemen had a previous misunderstanding starting for maybe two years and they have been involved in this type of behaviour for some time. The police tried to do what we can, we’re always out there patrolling in the area, but there are times when we cannot be there 24 hours.”
Ann Williams, Aunt of murder victim
“My little nephew gone just like that, to try help somebody, help
his own cousin. He doesn’t have any fight, no beef, or nothing with them and I guess the guy was drunk. I guess he was really high.”
According to eighteen year old Delson Vasquez, he and the accused had an argument late Saturday night and his cousin came to help him after Gentle hit him across the forehead.
Delson Vasquez, Cousin of murder victim
“He just came up to me and told me he doesn’t want me to talk to his girl. I told him to relax and he asked me if I wanted him to juck me and I told him to come, I told anytime he was ready and I told my cousin for us to go home and then Ellison, he and his brother, just follow me to the basketball court and Esaline’s brother knocked me in my head.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
He knocked you in your head with what?
Delson Vasquez,
“With a pint and then I stumbled and same Esaline was coming with a knife and then Chippy jumped in the way and he got stabbed right there.”
Ann Williams,
“I really couldn’t stand to see him but I heard he punctured the lungs and went all the way to the heart so I think he bleed too much and when he reached the hospital the last thing I see, when I peeped through the glass door is that he opened his eyes and he just looked around. And when I saw the doctor came out and talked to the police, I said, ‘no, no.’”
Jacqueline Godwin,
How many times was he stabbed?
Ann Williams,
“He was stabbed two times so it wasn’t like self-defense because Chippy wasn’t even fighting, Chippy just went to defend his cousin.”
Delson Vasquez,
“I really feel bad because that is my
first cousin. It hurts me bad that Esaline would do something like this.”
Sr. Supt. Paul Wade,
“This matter is under investigation and what I can say now is that they were involved in a fight. The deceased was on his way home from a dance that was occurring in the village and upon reaching near the basketball court in the said village he was accosted by Esaline Gentle where a fight broke out between them and where he inflicted the injury.”
According to the victim’s family since Orlando Myers’ sister left him Esaline Gentle has been a problem to them.
Rosela Williams, Grandmother of murder victim
“Sometimes he used to sit on that step out there and when the girl that he had left him, he always throwed phrase on that girl there, cussing some nasty words and things.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
But you never believed it would have ended like this?
Rosela Williams,
“I never believed that would have happened like that and then Chippy, he doesn’t deserve something like this.”
The homicide was the first this year for Georgeville Village but according to the residents, for some time now they have been concerned about what has been unfolding in their community. They told 7NEWS that it was only a matter of time before someone would have been killed.
Ann Williams,
“They are always running about with machetes like they are crazy. Whenever Georgeville has something, it always happens so we expected it but not because it is my nephew I will say he doesn’t give trouble and thing but he goes to work, he comes back home.”
Sr. Supt. Paul Wade,
“Currently we continue to patrol the are the best we can using the resources that we have but probably as you can see there is a station that is being constructed in that village and I think at the conclusion of that construction, certainly we will have more security in the village because we’ll have a residence that is there.”
On Tuesday Orlando Myers will be laid to rest while his accused killer Esaline Gentle will be formally arraigned on the charge of murder. Jacqueline Godwin reporting for 7NEWS.
And while charges will be brought for that killing shortly, Belmopan police report that no arrests have been made for Thursday’s murder of 30 year old Cotton Tree resident Ronnie Aguilar.
