Saturday night saw a murder in the City, and while, unfortunately, that may not be unusual, the gender of the murder victim certainly was.
A gunman looking for a gang target stormed into a fenced yard and shot an innocent young mother: 21-year-old Nelisha Nolberto.
The logic is confounding and cruel: he didn't get his target, so he just killed 21 year old Nelisha.
Her family has exploded in grief and anger, but is also reeling in incomprehension.
Cherisse Halsall has the story:
21-year-old Nelisha Nolberto was killed on Saturday night while sitting around a picnic table in her sister's yard. She'd brought her 6-month-old son to visit for a few days while her sister had some time off. But she couldn't have known that the visit would be her last.
And, on Saturday night as she sat socializing with family members a gunman in pursuit of a target entered the yard. But that target dashed off, and the gunman turned his weapon on Nelisha.
And in the aftermath of her murder that sister, a WPC, went live with a heart-wrenching lament about the cruel and callous manner in which her sister was shot.
Olga Nolberto, Sister of the deceased
"Why, do you men who call yourselves badman pick up the gun and you could never, never, never, ever, get the right person. Why would you shoot people who don't do anything why do you always hurt people who don't hurt anybody."
This morning she's still reliving what she imagines the last minutes of her sister's life to have been like
Olga Nolberto, Sister of the deceased
"When she saw the man in front of her I guess she didn't have any other choice but to sit there frozen and the man could look her right in her face and shoot her right in her face like cold-blooded like you no have no heart, don't no have sisters, don't you have a mother, don't you have brothers, don't you have other people, don't you have feelings."
"Why would you shoot my sister in her face, why, she didn't harm you, she didn't do anything to you. Why would you take it out of her when she didn't even know you. Why didn't you chase the man that you saw run from you instead of hurting my little sister and taking her away from my nephew."
Nelson Norberto is the father of both women. He's dutiful in his paternal role as father and grandfather. This morning as he told us about the daughter he's lost, he reminisced on the morning routine that he'll never get back.
Nelson Nolberto, Father of the Deceased
"I tried to pray everyday, me and Nelisha and to ask to bless other people's lives and so by people doing this to this family they really tore us apart mein but I always pray and ask god to forgive them because he's the only ultimate. He's the Alpha and the Omega."
"It really hurts me right they took away my precious child. May God be with that person and their family that they hurt this family really bad. I saw this thing on Television all the time and I always hoped and prayed that one day it wouldn't come to me but it came knocking at my door."
It came knocking because of a flare up in gang rivalries:
Jules Vasquez:
"Sir now was she the target or did the shooter just enter and fire upon anyone?"
Sr. Supt Hilberto Romero, Deputy Head, NCIB
"The information is that they just entered and fired toward the direction where the crowd was."
Jules Vasquez:
"Now, we know that there had been a shooting on Friday night and we know that there are active gang hostility between certain groups in the City right now is this a product of those ongoing gang rivalries?"
Sr. Supt Hilberto Romero, Deputy Head, NCIB
"Yes, this is a result of ongoing gang rivalries in the city."
Rumors abound that the intended target could have a connection with last week's murder of another 21 year old, Placencia resident George Murphy.
Sr. Supt Hilberto Romero
"Yes, we are following up on that information that it may be related to that murder."
Jules Vasquez:
"Okay now sir is it true that one of the suspects may somehow be a relative of the deceased."
Sr. Supt Hilberto Romero
"We have one person in custody and we will continue with the investigation to find out who are these persons are."
Jules Vasquez:
"Is there any effort to mediate to have a dialogue or to contain any escalation?"
Sr. Supt Hilberto Romero
"Yes, there are ongoing operations to try to prevent any retaliation regarding this murder and whatever we need to do it will be out there with the intention to prevent any further violence."
And as Nelisha's family mourns they have to take up a new responsibility, the care, and protection of her infant son. We asked the baby's grandfather what he'll tell the boy about the mother he'll never know
Nelson Nolberto, Father of the Deceased
"I don't really know but he would have to understand, no. He's basically at home with us. He's just like ours me and my wife because most of the tricks most of the things that the mother put to the child we tell her what to do. And so we set up the whole thing and so it won't be difficult. But I know the child anybody would have wanted to see their mother or the mother would have wanted to see the child take his first steps or creep."
Nolberto leaves behind her son Amir who, as we told you, is 6 months old.
