Two murdered and one clings to life in less than 12 hours

The spate of murders that started over the weekend continued Monday night and as many prepared to start the work day, the gun violence had taken the lives of two Belize City men – all in a matter of twelve hours. Another clings to life at the K.H.M.H.  It all happened in the same neighborhood, leaving families shocked at the senseless loss of life. Up to news time no charges have been made and police are combing through the deadly streets looking for suspects, weapons and motives. News Five’s Jose Sanchez reports on the murder of Ralton “Shabba” Usher.

Jose Sanchez, Reporting

Thirty-one year old Ralton ‘Shabba’ Usher was shot at least four times and died on the pavement in front of Eighty-Eight Shopping Center on Central American Boulevard. Because of shootings in the neighborhood earlier that night, Shabba’s girlfriend urged him to be careful. But later on around ten-thirty, gunfire once more interrupted the silence of an already static night.

Veronica Green, Girlfriend of Ralton ‘Shabba’ Usher

“When I come home from work as I walk up my step I hear gunshot inna di preschool right ova deh. I call ah and seh Shabba, wah baby just get shot weh six, wah man get dead and di baby grandpa get shot. Ih seh babe “Why dehn bwai noh stop dehn fool”; neva knowing dat two and a half hours afta, he would ah mi be di next victim. I sit down yah di wait patiently fi he. I come in and put on di news and I heard lum lum lum lum, and I text he and I seh gunshot just gone off just now. Weh pah yoh deh cause I know yoh di come dis way. He noh ansa me, neva knowing dat he can’t ansa because dah he dehn di shot up out deh. I gone and I search di body. Ih had two gunshot weh I see personally. He had two pan ih head and pan ih nipple ih had one pan di left and one pan di right. He mi done got his face tie up, dehn mi done got ih two big toe tie up and I open up everything because I want si weh all get shot.”

Several of Shabba’s personal items were missing.

Rushelly Hoare

“As we heard, a chain, money and a ring. We only get back one dollar inna ih wallet along wid ih identification pictures and thing. Normally he noh wah be wah person weh have one dollar inna ih wallet cause according to di person weh ih mi gwein meet, ih mi gwein gamble and if you gwein gamble yoh ker money.”

Everyone agrees that Shabba was too frequently with the ladies.

Sherilyn Hoare, Niece of Murder Victim

“He da di ladies man. He deal wid di ladies. When he come off ah work usually somebody he di text fi probably deal with or deh wid ah or something like that.”

Veronica Green

“Me and him sit down deh and so he mi talk, we mi separate and thing. And so he seh I apologize fi weh I do to you because weh I do you wrong. Den ih seh he get wid dis female—I noh want call fi she name but she know who she is—and dat dis gial F ah ova. Ih seh she F me ova, ih seh I cant believe weh she do. Ih seh more dan likely dis gial dah wah married woman and my pah tell me neva play wid wah married woman. Ih seh when she tell me dat instant I walk away from she because ih seh yoh shouldn’t commit adultery. Ih seh but you know something, dat dah mi my mistake.”

Sherilyn Hoare

“Maybe some woman weh he probably di deal wid or weh he got and yoh know how dehn thing wid dehn man—I noh know weh fi seh cause we noh get no kinda information so far.”

Jose Sanchez

“Do you think police need to step up patrols in the area?”

Sherilyn Hoare

“Yes, of course. Dehn noh only need fi do dat. I think di government now ih di reach too far; innocent people di get hurt. I could seh he innocent, he dah part ah my family. Many people like seh well we like seh people innocent, but I could seh it because I know ah.”

Sheree Hoare, Niece of Victim

“Most ah everybody go shop at Brad’s and he run joke wid dehn. He wah talk to dehn like he know dehn long time. He run joke but he noh run serious joke wid nobody. We cant seh he got no beef wid anybody.”

Veronica Green

“I noh know he fi be no trouble man and I know him for years. And anybody know—everybody weh know Shabba know he dah—from di time I know ah ih noh even report sick dah ih job. So he go dah work Sunday to Sunday without one day off. And dah wah black man just like all ah we black man out yah working for a Chiney Sunday to Sunday. You could trust dis young man.”

Voice of: Brother of Murder Victim

“What I’d like to see happen is more police patrols at night weh noh wear uniform because normally dah like weh I seh, di police can’t be everywhere. Sometimes dah just as the police pass, the criminals got everything figured out. As the police pass they know within certain time wah next police patrol wahl happen. So dah right between dah space ah time di things happen.”

The family appeals to the public to give information that would help police solve the crime. Reporting for News Five, Jose Sanchez.