Shot and Killed, Albert Vargas Becomes Latest Murder Victim in Orange Walk
Albert Vargas
Twenty-one-year-old Albert Vargas is the latest murder victim. He was killed inside a car in Orange Walk Town on Tuesday night near a tacos stand in a heavily trafficked area. Vargas was parked along the Belize/Corozal Road near Landy’s and Sons when a gunman appeared pointed a gun at him and released the bullets, injuring him to the neck. According to Police, however, the duo had picked up the gunman, who sat in the backseat of the vehicle. An argument ensued between Vargas and his killer before gunshots rang out. The gunman then escaped on foot and is believed to be from Belize City. In the car with Vargas was his friend who rushed him to the Northern Regional Hospital where he succumbed. As News Five’s Hipolito Novelo found out today, Vargas’ family believes he was lured to his dead by a caller.
Hipolito Novelo, Reporting
The normalcy of a Tuesday night along this stretch of the Belize/Corozal road was interrupted when shots rang out. The sound of gunfire sent those around diving, taking cover from the gun man.
Voice of: Eyewitness [Translated]
“What we saw last night was something fast. A man appeared; he came and shot at the vehicle which was in front of a business which was there. We could not see who was the person. We only heard the shots. When we heard the shots, we all got down to the ground.”
It took the shooter seconds to fatally shot twenty-one-year-old Albert Vargas, a shop assistant of Orange Walk Town. He was in a Ford Escape, parked near tacos vendors, along with a friend, one Jose Medina, when the gunman attacked. Vargas was shot twice in the neck. He was rushed to the Northern Regional Hospital by Medina but died while receiving treatment. The friend remains in police custody. The Ford Escape remains impounded at the Orange Walk Police Station and the gunman remains at large.
Voice of: Eyewitness [Translated]
“We could not see if it was someone Hispanic or colored. It was something fast. No one expected it. We heard the gunshots. Only a few people were there and the car which came. There weren’t a lot of people there. We only saw when he ran. We could not recognize who the person was. We only saw a person who ran out of the vehicle and continued running. When he saw the person who shot had escaped, he came back for the vehicle and drove off with the driver. That is only thing we could have seen. We were all frightened. We have never seen something like this so close.”
Albert Vargas
Witnesses say they heard as many as seven gunshots. The family denied our request for a comment but reportedly believe that Vargas, who is a known figure to Orange Walk police, was lured to his death. At around seven-thirty on Tuesday night, he received a phone call. He was suspicious of the person on the other end of that call but still decided to meet the caller. Vargas, however, picked up Medina before driving to his demise. Reporting for News Five I am Hipolito Novelo.
In 2017, Albert Vargas and Jose Medina along with Junior Triminio were caught with five parcels of marijuana. The vehicle they were travelling in was intercepted by Orange Walk Police in Trial Farm Village. The marijuana amounted to more than four thousand grams. The trio was charged with possession of a controlled drug with the intent to supply.
