Hattieville Shooting Victim Detained; his Family is Outraged
Tyrone Belisle
The victim in a shooting incident in Hattieville is in detention. On January tenth, gunmen turned up at the home of Tyrone Belisle when he was with his family, Belisle fled, but was hit on the leg. Since then he has been picked up by the police, released and then detained again. Belisle’s family says he is under pressure to identify his shooters, but claims he does not know who pulled the trigger. Here’s News Five’s Duane Moody.
Duane Moody, Reporting
The family of shooting victim Tyrone Belisle is outraged tonight over his detention for a second day in a row. As was reported, on the night of January tenth, Belisle was at his house in the Bainsville area of Hattieville Village with his common-law wife and child when gunmen came knocking at his door. To draw the gunfire away from his family, Belisle ran out his back door and into bushes. While he escaped the barrage of bullets, he was struck in the left leg. Over a score of expended shells were reportedly found at the scene. His sister’s house located a block away was also shot up minutes later. He was later taken for treatment and has been at home recovering. But his sister Erica says that on the morning of January thirteenth, her brother was detained by police. He was briefly released twenty-four hours later and then re-detained.
Erica Belisle
Erica Belisle, Sister of Shooting Victim
“Yesterday morning, dehn come and dehn detain my brother nine o’clock and dehn bring ahn dah di station. I come dah di station ten o’clock and dehn tell me the O.C. want see ahn. The O.C. gone dah wah meeting dah Belize. 5:30 I come back and the O.C. still noh come back from the meeting. Dehn say come back at seven o’clock, when we come back seven, O.C. still noh deh yah. When we were exiting the station and we di left fi go ina wi vehicle, the O.C. peep pan wi from the top window and I ask him if I can please have a word with yo because dehn say dah you detain wi bredda. This morning, eight o’clock—dehn release mi bredda ten to eight—wah police truck come full with police come search fi gun and ammunition. We dah di victim but dehn di turn it the other way. Dehn come search fi gun and ammunition and dehn say mek mi bredda put on wah shirt. Mi bredda tell dehn he just come out of the station. Ih say the O.C. want see yo, but he noh see the O.C. yet. Now my bredda deh ina pain in deh; ina di station in pain and the O.C. want see ahn.”
According to Erica, the police have not been able to give the family a reason for Tyrone’s detention. She says, however, that her brother is being pressured to say who shot him even though he did not see who the shooters were.
Erica Belisle
“They believe my bredda know who shot ahn and dehn look like dehn wah detain ahn whole year fi di rest of ih life until ih call name. How? Weh we wah call weh we noh know? Unu wah put fi we life ina danger. Last time, my house get burn down sake ah di same thing.”
Moments after his detention this morning, the family claims that another Hattieville resident was picked up, allegedly for the shooting. Akeem Augustus, who is Tyrone’s friend, was placed inside the cell. Angry about the treatment of her son, Loretta Smith says the officers entered her house without her permission.
Voice of: Loretta Smith, Mother of Akeem Augustus
“When dehn turn the lane towards my home, I said that look like they are going to my home, so I run and when I look, they were already in the yard, have my son’s hands up on his head and searching the yard and home. And I said, unu can’t do that cause I live here. And dehn said, ma’am we don’t need to tell anybody when we are coming, we just di come and we noh need fi tell unu nothing. And I said that noh right. Wait make I open my place properly to unu that I could see what di happen. I ask mi son weh happen. Ih say I di sleep and when I open my eye and hear di dog di bark dah because police have me freeze with gun ina mi bed. Di police tell di young man weh get shot Friday dehn gwen go bring di man weh shot ahn. So I di ask if dah my son cause he wasn’t even in Hattieville when ih get that shot. Dah me call he and tell ahn that Mister Carlos house get shot. And not only that they are friends. If I neva had love fi dehn yah young lady ya because you come out yah [beep] and then dah yo son. And now nobody noh want tell yo weh dehn got ahn yah fah, nothing.”
The families say that they are seeking the assistance of an attorney to address this issue.
Erica Belisle
“The only last assistance is a lawyer. We will bring in a lawyer cause the O.C. noh want face we, so maybe ih wah face the lawyer. And we wah ask ahn why you di act like my brebda shoot ihself or my bredda dah di gunman. Di gunman deh out deh, go find ahn. My bredda noh see dah who. Dehn shoot up my house and I noh see dah who. How we wah know dah who?”
Duane Moody for News Five.
