Earlier in the news we told you about a father who was stabbed to death. Well, another father - and grandfather - was shot while sleeping with his great grandson. 57 year old Phillip Nicholas was at home when he and his family were targeted. However, only he received injuries, while his wife was left traumatized. Courtney Menzies visited the home today and has this story.
57 year old Phillip Nicholas had been enjoying the weekend with his sons and great grandsons when he was killed while he was sleeping. He and his wife, along with one of the children, were sleeping on a mattress next to an open door - so they could get some breeze - when two men appeared at the door and fired indiscriminately.
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
"Officers attached to the Ladyville police formation are investigating the murder of 57 year old Phillip Nicholas a Belizean Handyman of the BDF housing site in Ladyville. This murder occurred sometime just before 2:00AM on the 4th January 2025. What we know so far is that Nicolas and 2 other family members were at home sleeping at the aforementioned time when a male person is reported to have entered that residence and fired several shots which resulted in the death of Mr Nicholas. 2 persons have been detained for questioning as the investigators seek to uncover the motive at to apprehend the culprit in this incident."
Reporter:
"Would you be able to say if Mr Nicholas had a dispute with another dispute earlier? Prior to the incident?"
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
"The information that has been disclosed is the extent to which the department wishes to disclose."
Reporter:
"Any suspects?"
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
"No suspects at the moment however 2 persons have been detained who police believe useful information can be obtained in relation to this investigation."
According to his daughter, Nicolas did not have any enemies but she believes - because they live in a secluded area - the murderers had to be from the area. She explained her parents moved away from Belize City to get away from this very violence.
But while he no longer lived in the city, he worked at the Leo Bradley Library. While he first started as a security guard in 2019, the principal librarian explained that he stuck around to lend a helping hand.
Felene Cayetano, Principal Librarian, Belize National Library Service and Information System
"Mr Nicholas was an important member of our library community. He was here on a daily basis assisting with whatever we needed that required manpower honestly and truly. He was able to set up tents, he was able to assist us with the garden from time to time, whenever the staff needed to run some errands and weren't able to leave, he would make that run for them."
"We are in shock and that is across the library system here in that not only did he assist here in Leo Bradley Library but also at other libraries in the system, we knew that we could depend on him to get certain things done. As I said before, he would assist when it came to certain groundwork but also when it came to manpower, when it came to moving shelves, when it came to fixing whatever needed to be patched, he was very helpful, always had a kind word and a big smile. All of us as we were reflecting this morning said that we would all miss when we would come into the compound and Mr Phillip was here before many of the staff in the morning, to greet us and to check how everything is going with us."
"The man loved to dance, the man loved to give a smile. He was an outgoing person who had a kind word for everybody he met."
Police had detained one man based on a dispute he had on Saturday night with Nicholas.
