And there was another murder in Cayo, this time on Sunday morning in Cristo Rey Village. The victim, 44-year-old Henry Charles Baptist, was warned against going into the village but did so to say one final goodbye to his deceased brother. He didn't even make it home before he was fatally shot. Courtney Menzies visited the scene of the crime and has this story.
44-year-old Henry Charles Baptist left his Santa Elena home on Saturday - against the advice of those closest to him - to attend his brother's wake in Cristo Rey Village. But just like his family feared, Baptist never returned home. Instead, he was left for dead on the roadside, with only one neighbor who heard the gunshots.
Ralph Pilley, Neighbor
"I was awakened by what I thought at the time were firecrackers, we hear firecrackers here all the time. Ad so I thought well somebody is shooting firecrackers, and then my next thought was well it's not a holiday, why would anybody be shooting firecrackers? And the sounds I herd were two pops close together and then a pause and then a third pop and right after that third pop, there was motorcycle engine that revved up, it went full speed this road, down the hill, toward Sa Ignacio and a car a couple of seconds right behind it. So I went back to bed, I didn't imagine someone had gotten shot, I thought it was just some kids blowing firecrackers and it wasn't until I got up later that morning that I came out and saw that there'd been a shooting."
"When I came out here, the police were already here and had cordoned off the body and I thought, to be honest with you, when I first came by I thought somebody had been hit by a car. Somebody was drinking and came in late to their house and got struck by a car and it wasn't until I asked the police, they said it was a shooting, and I said well, here's what I heard from last night."
And just like the warnings from Baptist's family, ASP Fitzroy Yearwood said that due to his criminal past, Baptist was not welcomed in Cristo Rey, and this "beef" may have led to his murder.
ASP Fitzroy Yearwood - Communications officer
"Mr Baptist was in the village from the night before attending a wake for a relative and sometime after 1am, he walked off without telling anyone where he was going but it is until the following morning when his body was discovered and that person called for police stating what they say."
"He has had his fair share of run-ins with the law and apparently there were persons in Cristo Rey Village in the past that he may have offended and those persons were sending threats that if he visited that area, what would take place, and I must say that they lived through to their threats."
Baptist leaves behind one son.
Police have one person detained so far.
