3 other weekend shootings in city

As the Martinez family pray that their son recovers from his wound, police are looking into several other shooting incidents that took place in Belize City over the weekend. Around 4:00 Saturday morning residents of Nargusta Street were awakened by the sounds of gunshots. When the firing stopped, fifty-five year old Norris Leslie lay wounded to the right side of his chest and lower rib cage. Leslie told police that he was in bed when he heard a loud noise at his front door. Police say when Leslie got up to investigate he saw two Creole men inside his house. Leslie reported to the police that he tried to chop one of the men with a machete, but the other man pulled out a gun and fired four times at Leslie. Leslie was taken to the KHMH where he received treatment and has since been released. However, thirty-three year old Gladys Coleman remains in the hospital after she received a gunshot wound to her right wrist. Coleman, who also lives on Nargusta Street, said it was like waking from a bad dream only to realize that it was true. Coleman says she was sleeping on her bunk bed when she suddenly woke up and realized she had been shot. Although both incidents happened in the same vicinity, the police say they do not believe the shootings are related.

Gladys Coleman, Shooting Victim

“Yes, about 4:00 Saturday morning I just feel something sting me on my hand and I jumped up screaming and my brother, who was at home told me that it was a gunshot. Afterwards, he took me to the Belize City hospital.”

Jacqueline Woods

“Up to today you still don’t know how you got shot?”

Gladys Coleman

“No, up to know I don’t know who shot me.”

P.C Fitzroy Yearwood, Acting Public Relations Officer, Police

“Well, we don’t suspect in any means that they are connected because if you noticed, one is at number 55 Nargusta Street and the other is at number 9. One is to the extreme end near the boulevard and the other one is the to the other end near Mopan Street. So by no means do we believe that they are connected and they happened almost around the same time, around 4:00 a.m. They found one…this man Mr. Leslie, found two persons in his house and he attempted to chop one of them and this person in return fired shots at him. The other one, this lady was just sleeping in her house when she was hit. We are not sure if it’s by a window or what, but she claims that she was asleep when the bullet hit her.”

Meanwhile, police are investigating yet another shooting incident that took place at the corner of Jasmine Street and Fern Lane in Belize City. Details are sketchy at this time and police say they do not know how Wilma Andrews managed to get shot while she was inside her home. Andrews reported to police that on Sunday morning, she heard three gunshots and then felt something hit her on the left breast. Police say at this time they do not have any suspects in any of the shooting incidents and their investigations continue.