Busito Driver Executed on George Price Highway
Oscar Vasquez
The murder count went up by two today. The latest victim was executed at around midday as he drove a ‘busito’ on the George Price Highway, heading to Saint Mathews Village. Oscar Vasquez, a resident from Belmopan, has been covering that run for some time, so it is believed that whoever wanted him dead, knew Vasquez’s route and waylaid him. This afternoon, near mile forty-five, a man waved down the ‘busito’ and as Vasquez stopped, one of his passengers opened fire from inside the vehicle. At least three gunshots made their mark on his head, killing him instantly. Here is News Five’s Isani Cayetano with a report.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
Twenty-nine-year-old Oscar Vasquez was driving a minivan, commonly known as a busito, towards St. Matthew’s Village with several passengers onboard when someone along the George Price Highway in the vicinity of the National Gas Company depot flagged him down. He slowed down and pulled over to the side of the road to pick up that individual. Gunfire erupted inside the vehicle before he could allow the man to enter. Vasquez’s brother-in-law was at work in Belmopan when he received word of an accident.
Voice of: Brother-in-law of Deceased
“I got a call through one of my colleagues at work where her cousin basically called to say my brother-in-law was in an accident, if I could take my mother-in-law by the hospital. And so I called her to see if, well I called my other brother-in-law to see if, the brother of the deceased, to see if he had received the message that Oscar was in any kind of trouble. Lo and behold, when I called my mother-in-law she said she did not get any call and so we rushed over to the hospital but by the time we arrived at the emergency we were met by a couple officers who asked us for particulars.”
It wasn’t until the brother-in-law provided those details that he found out about Vasquez’s demise, when he peered over a form that the officer was filling.
Voice of: Brother-in-law of Deceased
“I read on the paper “deceased“ and the minute he wrote Oscar Vasquez we basically knew it was very grim news that we‘d be getting, you know. So unfortunately, it‘s not the way you‘d like to receive any news of anyone‘s death but we‘re asking the public if they‘ve seen anything to please say something and definitely cooperate with the police who have shed some light on what they believe may have happened, but we know with the public‘s cooperation a very good result can come out of this case.”
According to police, Vasquez left from the Belmopan market square around 12:30 p.m. en route to St. Matthew’s Village, his normal run. Seated behind him was a Hispanic male who reportedly fired three shots at the driver, before taking off into nearby bushes along with the individual who waved down the minivan.
Voice of: Brother-in-law of Deceased
“When we got here my other brother-in-law, like I mentioned, he was already here. He went in to identify the body because my wife wasn‘t up to do that and when he came out he told us point blank the he was shot in the side of his head. So we know definitely [that] it was not an accident. We know that‘s not a robbery because apparently none of his personal effects have been taken. It‘s truly devastating to go through this right now but he‘s gonna be missed and of course we do hope that whosoever did this found, to be brought to justice.”
Despite a somewhat rocky past, Vasquez is described as a family man who invested time with his young daughter.
Voice of: Brother-in-law of Deceased
“Everybody in life we have challenges and he‘s really been taking the better of the last several years to improve his life, to look after his mom, look after my daughter, look after his daughter. He was really dedicated to his family and we can’t express our deepest condolences to his daughter because she’s devastated right now.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.
