Popular Street Figure, Alrick Smith Shot Dead
Alrick Smith
The rivalry between feuding street gangs in the Lake Independence area may have led to another murder on Thursday night – that of well-known street figure, Alrick Smith. The brazen killing happened as Smith approached his parked vehicle in front of the Rene Villanueva Media Centre on Slaughterhouse Road. Smith, who is associated with the PIV gang, had several run-ins with the law before and was also the target of previous shootings, most recently in 2020. News Five’s Marion Ali has the story in the following report.
Marion Ali, Reporting
Thirty-nine-year-old Alrick Smith had reportedly just stepped out of the door at the Rene Villanueva Media Centre on Slaughterhouse Road around ten o’clock on Thursday night when someone ambushed him as he approached his parked S.U.V. facing the building. The shooter apparently carried out the attack out of view of a surveillance camera that is perched under a ledge at the side of the building. Police report that the car dealer, a resident of Matron Roberts Street in Belize City, was leaving the media house along with a female companion when he was approached by two male persons who fired several shots at him. The images show Smith’s limp body crouched up next to the vehicle. Someone who was in the area told News Five today that the burst of about ten shots was not preceded or followed by any argument or speeding vehicle. Another well-placed source told us that Smith was a guest on More FM, one of the radio stations housed in that building. He had reportedly sponsored a monetary prize on a program which Blue Steel Sounds had just finished airing at ten p.m.
This amateur video posted on Love FM’s page minutes after the incident shows the police cordoning off the scene to begin their evidence gathering processing.
Prior to his visit to the radio station, Smith was a patron at a popular lounge not far away. The killing of yet another well-known gang member brings into sharp focus the bloodbath that rival gangs have obviously entered, as well as the joint effort between police and mediators to stem the bloodshed. Just this week, Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams told the media that the police had put in place new measures in the area to quell the raging war between the P.I.V. and Backaland gangs.
Chester Williams
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police (File: July 27, 2022)
“I have given certain instructions for certain things to be done. And yes, the L.I.U. (Leadership Intervention Unit) is on the ground along with the conflict officers to see what we can do to bring some resolution to the area. It is not going to be easy, I must say, because we do know how these gang situations go. There is always that tendency that they want to retaliate, and we must do what we can to avert such retaliation. We know we have the multi-sectoral task force on the ground and we’ll try to use that as a first resort along with the police efforts to quell the problem. If in the longer run we see that the problem persists after mediation and intervention, then we’ll look at other resorts to ensure we bring some calm to the St. Martin’s area.”
In November of 2020, Smith came under attack as he drove his vehicle on Coney Drive. Smith told police after the incident that his assailant occupied an unlicensed blue Chrysler that pulled up beside him, and someone in the front passenger seat shot at him. He was grazed near his left ear and managed to drive to the KHMH to seek medical attention. Smith had come under fire a few times prior to that incident. Marion Ali For News Five.
