Belize City Man Shot 5 Times in the Face

Jose Manuel Ayala

A Belize City man was brutally murdered over the weekend. The body of twenty-nine-year-old Jose Manuel Ayala was found with five gunshot wounds to the face in the wee hours of Saturday morning. His body was found inside his white Chevrolet TrailBlazer which was found parked at mile three of the George Price Highway. Investigators believe that the murderer is someone that Ayala had problems with and is gang-related. Hipolito Novelo reports.

Hipolito Novelo, Reporting

Belize City resident, Jose Manuel Ayala, was found dead inside his white Chevrolet TrailBlazer parked on Mile three on the George Price Highway. The discovery was made sometime around one-thirty on Saturday morning. The twenty-nine-year-old had been shot five times in the face. He was left slouching on the front passenger street, leaving one to suspect that the killer may have been driving Ayala’s car.

ASP Alejandro Cowo, O.C., C.I.B., Belize City

“Initial information that the police have gathered is that Jose Manuel Ayala was seen early in the night attending a social event at the Supal area and that was the last night he was seen alive.”

Since the gruesome discovery, police have been unable to hold anyone culpable for Ayala’s murder.

ASP Alejandro Cowo

“Police had detained several persons for questioning but they had to released because of insufficient evidence.”

Alejandro Cowo

Andrea Polanco

“Anything to indicate if he was killed in that particular area?”

ASP Alejandro Cowo

“Yes, there were some expended shells that were found inside the vehicle.”

Investigators found five expended nine-millimeter shells. As for the motive, investigators believe that Ayala murder is gang-related.

ASP Alejandro Cowo

“We do not suspect that it was a drug-related incident. We suspect that it is something internal among those persons in the Jane Usher area.”

Reporter

“That is was gang related?”

ASP Alejandro Cowo

“Yes, we believe so.”

Hipolito Novelo, News Five.