Controversy over Police Response to Deadly King’s Park Shooting

Fitzroy Yearwood

In the wake of the chilling incident, there has been controversy over the police department’s response time since a phone call was placed sometime around three o’clock on Saturday morning.  According to members of a neighborhood watch group in King’s Park, the responding officers did not show up until several hours later.  That claim, however, is refuted by the department’s communications director who countered by saying that the persons who alerted the police to the shooting did not come outside to provide the officers with an exact location.

ASP Fitzroy Yearwood, Communications Director, Belize Police Department

“This neighborhood watch needs to be careful.  They are putting themselves, saying that they called for the police, so why didn’t they come out for the police when the police responded?  One.  When something happens everybody wants to create an excuse or wants to play a blame game.  Our officers responded and I can tell the neighborhood watch that.  I am certain of that because I was following the blog. He shouldn’t have been home with that weapon, one.  When the firm couldn’t locate him, this is what alerted them.  Probably we would have still been going house to house trying to find this location if it was not for their help and that’s why I can refute that statement about the neighborhood watch who wants to claim against the police’s action because the security firm really played a big role in alerting us as to where that incident took place.”