Chopping Incident in Corozal Leaves One Man Dead, Another Shot by Police

Mark Massam Jr.

There was a brutal and bloody murder in Corozal Town on Tuesday night. It happened at around nine o’clock on College Road as residents of the area were getting ready to turn in for the night. Two men, who are not known to be friends, became embroiled in a violent argument which led to murder. When police arrived at the scene they cautioned Carlos Cassanova Junior to desist from chopping Mark Massam Junior with a machete, but Cassanova would not.  Police then fired shots at him. Massam was well-known to the law, but Cassanova does not have a police record. Duane Moody was up north and spoke to family members of both the victim and the aggressor.

Duane Moody, Reporting

College Road, Corozal Town on Tuesday night was the scene of the first homicide in northern Belize for the month of December. This huge blood-stained area is the telltale sign that the victim bled to death after he was chopped multiple times to the head and upper body near this lamppost on College Road. Just after nine p.m. as residents were retiring for the night, twenty-nine year old Mark Massam Junior was attacked and hacked to death by a machete-wielding Carlos Cassanova Junior.

Peter Serano

Inspector Peter Serano, Deputy Commander, Corozal Police

“About nine-fifteen, police received information of a chopping incident on College Road. They immediately responded and arriving on the scene, police could have seen a person inflicting chop wounds on another person. The scene was processed where the male person who was lying face down was learned to be Mark Massam, a construction worker right here of Corozal. His body was later transported to the morgue after the scene was processed. Initial investigation reveals that both Cassanova and Massam sometime around nine-ten, they were both riding on separate bicycles in a westerly direction on College Road where an argument started and ended in a machete fight.”

The body of Mark Junior is currently inside the morgue at the Corozal Community Hospital. According to his sister, Natalie who rushed to Corozal from Belize City upon word of her brother’s demise, Mark had left his common-law-wife and their months old baby at home en route to his brother’s house when he was viciously attacked by Cassanova Junior.

Natalie Massam

Voice of: Natalie Massam, Sister of Murder Victim

“My bredda mi gone and look fi ih vehicle because my other bredda mi have ih vehicle. But they neva find ahn and then dehn say he jump pan wah bicycle and gone somewhere and somebody mi di dodge ahn and when he pass the place, dah then the bally start chop up ahn.”

Police arrived on the scene shortly after the attack began and it is reported that Cassanova Junior would ignore their presence and warning shots. He was then shot to the legs and transported to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital where he remains in stable condition, but under police guard.

Voice of: Natalie Massam

“They say that the police deh pan the scene and the see the man di chop up ahn, chop up ahn and the polcei noh do nothing. Hear what they wah do? Dehn wah wait till the man done kill the man and then they shot the man ina ih foot two time. I noh think that fair.”

Inspector Peter Serano

“Police shouted after the person to stop and drop the machete which he refused. Warning shots were fired and the person continued to inflict chop wounds on the other person who was already on the ground. Subsequently, two shots were fired at the person who was doing the chopping; hitting him on both legs and knee. The person was subdued and his identity was learned to be Carlos Cassanova, twenty-two years old Belizean of Corozal.”

According to Deputy Commander of Corozal Police, Inspector Peter Serano, there are no records of any dispute between the victim and his attacker and the motive of the homicide is unknown. But was Mark Junior the victim of a mentally challenged attacker?

Carlos Cassanova Jr.

Voice of: Carlos Cassanova Sr., Father of Accused

“I conscious that ih noh correct from ih mind because ih start to tell me wah lotta things and it’s the first time that I see this young bwai di tell me lotta thing, my son. Ih say demon; ih say somebody from Corozal want to kill him. And I asked him who want kill yo? Ih say you can’t help me with that.”

Duane Moody

“I understand that due to fear of these so-called demons, he did not leave his house until last night.”

Voice of: Carlos Cassanova Sr.

“Yes, until last night. Ih say mom, dad, I’m going with my friends. And I said alright boy, just take care for me.”

Duane Moody

“What time was this that he left?”

Voice of: Carlos Cassanova Sr.

“He left like eighty-thirty and ih left and went. Then me and his mom gone take a sleep and like in fifteen minutes, a lady come with the car and they just tell wi, yo son just kill a man.  I feel like I’m not standing on the earthy right now. I don’t know how I feel; I can’t explain you that right now. The same thing with my woman; my woman suffer from the heart.”

Two machetes were recovered from the scene; one was the murder weapon used. Duane Moody for News Five.