Tonight the Belize Indian community is reeling with grief and incomprehension after an execution style murder on one of the pillars of their community.
50-year-old Anil Asnaney was killed last night - in front of one of the most popular gathering places for his community - the Sumathi Indian Restaurant in the Kings Park area.
He had gone there to pick up food last night around 8:00, something he does often. He went back to his pickup but before he could even get inside, gunshots erupted and Asnaney fell to the ground, dead. Police were on the scene a minute later but up to tonight, no questions have been answered as to who the murderer is and why the businessman was killed in cold blood.
His countrymen and women are tonight trying to figure out how Asnaney went from a selfless storeowner to a murder victim.
And while his family chose not to give comment at this time, his friends from the Albert division where his store is located spoke about the deep sense of loss. Courtney Menzies has this story.
A hardworking businessman; a prominent figure in the Belizean-Indian Community; a devout Hindu, a loving husband, father, brother, boss, friend - these are only some of the ways 50-year-old Anil Asnaney has been described.
And tonight, that community, along with the wider public who had been touched by Asnaney's kindness, is in shock after he was ruthlessly murdered last night.
Asnaney and his wife, 44-year-old Manisha Asnaney, were leaving Sumathi Restaurant on Baymen Avenue last night around 8pm when two gunmen on bicycled reportedly opened fire.
They did not try to rob him - they just shot him in the head and left him dead on the pavement - right in front of his wife who made futile attempts to save him - while suffering from a gunshot wound herself.
And other members of this close knit community gathered at the scene to lend their strength to the wailing family - and to try and comprehend this unprecedented execution.
And the Albert community is also grappling with this loss, since Asnaney's store, Sensation X-Treme, is right in downtown Belize, where it's been for over a decade. And another vendor, who knew him for about 7 years, told us that she noticed that he wasn't his jovial self yesterday morning.
Voice of: Friend of Deceased
"I felt bad because he's my good friend and just yesterday we were running joke with him, we were clowning him about how he was laughing but then I know it shocked everybody because he was nice, his wife was nice, and you know I usually mess with him in the morning, clown him, hail him, tell him morning but somehow yesterday to me, he just looked dull, he wasn't happy, like he was feeling something."
"He was a nice man, every time they have their Diwali and things like that, New Years, Christmas, I usually am with them, support them, eat their food, sometimes when I need a little talk, I'd go to him or his wife and we'd talk, they'd give me advice and stuff, but not one day they turned you down. They're always there for everybody so I don't know who would want to try hurt them because anybody that knows them knows they're loving people."
"It's a huge loss because they people don't bother anybody, they just come, work, love everybody so I don't know who could do that."
And the Albert Area Rep Tracy Panton took to Facebook to express her devastation over the loss of such a stalwart in the division. According to her, Asnaney would always be willing to work alongside her for a safer community and to assist needy persons in the area.
Hon Tracy Panton, Area Rep/Friend
"They have always been very open to me, very supportive of whenever I'm campaigning within the Belize/Indian community, they have been very supportive of people in the Albert community, they have their store, they work very hard and they were always willing to support people in the community and took very good care of their customers. He would often stop by my office to share his concerns of share ideas or just to pop in to say hello. I only know him to be kind and generous and very helpful. Always willing to help, to find some little way to help others. He would always say Ms Tracy if you know somebody who needs a pair of shoes and I can help, you can give me a call, he was that kind of person always open to helping others."
"Anil was the only son for his mother, his mother is 95 I believe, she's here in Belize, he has four sisters, he has a wife, he has his daughters, so it's a big loss for his family, a big loss for the Belizean-Indian community and a big loss for the Albert community as well."
According to the Commissioner of Police, the culprits may have been monitoring the police patrol, striking less than five minutes after they left the area. The officers responded immediately but the killers escaped.
Tonight the Indian remains in total shock and incomprehension and have asked for some time before they make a comment.
According to the family's spokesperson, the family is doing all they can to cooperate with the authorities to get justice for Asnaney.
