Teacher killed in canal side shooting spree

A late evening walk on West Canal turned deadly last night. Husband and wife, Carlos and Albina Jackson and Carlos’ nephew, Pio Coc all from San Pedro Colombia, Toledo had been shopping for materials for their courses at the Belize Teacher’s Training College and decided to stay downtown for dinner. The trio were laughing and talking as they left the restaurant around 11:30, not knowing that just five minutes later, their lives would be changed forever.

Albina Jackson, Witness to Shooting

“We were heading home. We were going to catch a taxi to drop us home because we stay in Ladyville, in Lord’s Bank Road. And while we came at the bridge, the canal that is there, as we make the turn, I was ahead of my husband and my nephew-in-law — because the person who died was my nephew-in-law — they were behind me.

And I saw two young boys, you know, dark complexion, rode and passed me. And as they passed me, they stop and tell me, they say, “Hold up! Give us what you have! Give us money!” When I turned I saw that this young man had a gun in his hand. As he said that he had a gun in his hand, pointing in the air first. But when the other two, they just freeze there for a little while and he just started firing. He didn’t even move off his bike. He, he was just shooting, shooting, shooting. All the while I thought it was blank shot, it wasn’t blank. And then my husband say, “run,” and when he say run, the three of us run and not knowing that they got shot behind me. And as we reach Orange Street, my nephew-in-law fell and that was then I knew that he was shot. He was shot many times.”

According to the initial police report, teacher Pio Coc received two gun shot wounds to his upper back and two to his upper left arm.

Albina Jackson

“When we came to that curve, my nephew-in-law just fell on his face and he was already dying and my husband went and sit but not knowing that he was shot. “Bina,” he say, “Pio is going to die. Pio is going to die. I got shot also so please call the police.” And there was no phone so we were around a Chiney place and I asked the Chiney to please call when they hear you know, a shooting has you know… They call the police for us. And from there, the people rushed to help because they were people on the street, people on the street, not only us walking there.”

But eyewitnesses to the aftermath tell News Five that while pedestrians did rush to the victims, they only did so to help themselves to the money and jewelry the murderer and his accomplice never got.

Albina Jackson

“He has a wife, three children and she is expecting another one. They are so young and I don’t know why those young boys have to do that. Why? They don’t gain anything from it.”

Q: “Did you all give them, the men any of your jewelry or anything?”

Albina Jackson

“No. They did not come close to us. They did not come close. The young man was on his bike and he was just firing and the other one was just beside him; they didn’t move.”

Janelle Chanona for News Five.

Pio Coc died while undergoing surgery at the K.H.M.H. His uncle, Carlos Jackson remains in a critical condition. The three have been enrolled at the Belize Teacher’s Training College for the past year. Police have picked up 21 year old Jason Albert Duncan Rudon a gas station attendant and 24 year old Ryan Jones Wright, a laborer in connection with the incident.