17 year old Sadie Vernon student killed in her living room
Shenelle Reyes
On Tuesday night in Belize City, a seventeen year old fourth form student of Sadie Vernon High School was killed by a single gunshot. It happened at the living room of her Sibun Street home at around ten o’clock when the blast came from a gun held by her friend. News Five’s Marion Ali found Shenelle Reyes’ family and classmates in shock at the fatal shooting.
Marion Ali, Reporting
The spot where seventeen year old Shenelle Reyes was killed inside her home on Tuesday night looked pretty much the same when we visited with the family this morning. Stunned by the killing, Reyes’ two cousins who were at home at the time of the incident, told News Five that the accused, Abrahiem Smith, a regular visitor to the house, was playing with a sawed-off shotgun.
Voice of: Denval Davis, Eyewitness
“This bway mi di play with wah gun then the bwai stand up and ih start point it in the gyal face. He think di gial mi di play, but the gial noh di play. Then he point the gun at the gial then I just hear bang and when I look pan the gial and I just see wah blame a smoke front ah di gial.”
marion Ali
Marion Ali
“Who was this guy and was he playing?”
Voice of: Denval Davis
“He think the gial mi di play but the gial neva mi di play with ahn. The gial tell ahn put down the gun cause ih noh play like dat.”
Anesha Robateau, Cousin of Shooting Victim
Anesha Robateau
“It was a big bang very hard noise so we thought it was like downstairs or on the bridge. So when I fully awake, I heard Denval making a noise as in saying Shenelle, Shenelle geh shot. When I come inside Shenelle eye mi still open but ih just neva mi di respond. So when I see that ih like just deh di go and ih eye eventually the shet down, I shake ahn and I di wake up ahn. I say Shenelle noh goh, ah seh noh goh cousin. I say open yo eye—stay with me. And I di check ah and when I come pan di other side ah di chair, I see di hole inside ah fi she chest yah and ih m I very huge so I then tell my auntie when I done shake ahn and thing and I see she noh the respond and then she just fall flat.”
Reyes never lived for help to arrive. She died in the same chair just minutes after she was shot at close range. After the incident, Smith reportedly fled and hid the gun in an adjacent yard, but police recovered the weapon this morning and have taken it into their custody. But he, on the other hand, has made himself scarce and is nowhere to be found.
Over at her school, a black bow adorns the wall outside Shenelle’s classroom. Following a vigil at Saint Martin de Porres Church in her memory this morning, classes continued throughout the day but not on the scheduled agenda, as the flags of the Belizean National and the school flags flew at half mast on the school compound. It is a loss that faculty and friends have found hard to cope with.
laura baptist
Laura Baptist, Principal, Sadie Vernon High School
“I had asked that after the church service this morning that students return to their homerooms for the homeroom teachers and other teachers to assist with guiding the students of writing poems, expressing themselves and sharing how they are feeling about this gruesome incident.”
William Nduka, Friend of Shenelle Reyes
william nduka
“I could remember coming to school Monday and walking pass the school gate and she said assembly again? I know assembly was kidna boring and she said I wah take my time. And coming to school the next day and somebody telling me that she dead. I cried out my eyes cause it’s a really sad incident to have a good friend like that. Friends like that are hard to find. May her soul rest in peace.”
herman castillo
Herman Castillo, Friend of Shenelle Reyes
“Ih wah be hard cause wshe dah noh somebody weh need fid eh pan the compound; yoh noh have to see her, but you will hear her voice, but that no wah deh bout again caz she’s gone.”
A few of Reyes’ classmates went to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital’s morgue to view the body of their fallen friend, while others, still overcome by grief, remained at school and made drawings and signs in her honor. Marion Ali for News Five.
how did her parents permit a shotgun with ammunition in the house to be “playing” around with. sad for the girl, but seems like something that could have been avoided. very sad
How can she be a positive student if she encourage a young man into her home with an unlicensed firearm. She should have call the police as there are always commercial saying report a crime. The devil just claim one of his own, wake up Belizeans and learn from this guns do not kill people. People kill people no matter who it is report them, now this guy can only be charge for manslaughter by negligence as murder will not stick. He was playing with a gun and it went off if she was so straight then that would not have happen. Sorry to put it straight but we all need to learn from this experience.
Another senseless death. I don’t believe for one second this was an accident, no one points a loaded weapon at another person unless they are willing to pull the trigger. If he is retarded he should not have access to a gun. In addition he chose to run instead of turning himself in to the Police & begging the family for forgiveness. The family may not have been a position where they were ready to hear him but it would have been a start. This idiot needs to be put to sleep before he accidentally shoots another friend or cut a baby’s throat.
I believe the minor should be thought a lesson nobody should be playing with a gun, there’s a reason why they are illegal. The young woman life was cut short due to his stupidity. Lock up the fool!
another question that should be asked is where the hell he got the gun from? who is the owner? unless he brought it with him to that house, things like these need to be investigated. and what about the parents aren’t they aware which type of friends their youths have. how come i’ll not see a guy playing a gun in my house with my daughter or my son with out not having some kind of concern. but it shows that many time we as parents tend to let things flow like nothing until it strikes our attention fully and with consequences then we are like what the hell happen? Parents be more aware about the kind of friends that walk into your house. youths sometime do stupid things like any teen but we need to watch them more carefully. r.i.p belizean sister and may the Lord almighty give your family the strenght needed, hoping that justice is served as it should be.
NO ACCIDENT AT ALL THIS KID HAD THE WILL TO KILL HE WANTED TO FEEL THAT TRIGGER GO OFF HE WANTED TO KNOW WHAT MURDER FELT LIKE…HE SHOULD BE FOUND AND LOCKED UP FOREVER BECAUSE HE WILL DO IT AGAIN FOR SURE.
I HOPE THIS IS AN EXAMPLE FOR PARENTS AND KIDS TO LEARN TO CHOOSE WHOLESOME GOOD CLEAN FRIENDSHIPS WITH HONEST, KIND PEOPLE AND NOT WITH BULLIES,CLOWN,CRIMINALS WITH GUNS.
WHY DIDN’T SOMEONE STOP HIM OR CHASE HIM OUT OF THE HOUSE WTIH THAT GUN SOMEBODY OUT THERE COULD HAVE PREVENTED THIS…WHAT A HARD LESSON TO LEARN “IF ONLY I SHOULD HAVE”.
I am hoping and praying, that these guns which are recovered by the police, don’t make there way back on streets. Senseless killlings…Belizeans need to take a stand to Save our youths. No youths no future!
This is terrible and a senseless murder my heart goes out to the family of Shenelle however my question is what was a seventeen year old girl doing with a person like this around her, knowing that he carries a gun, did he just find this gun or was he always a gun toting person and how many other supposedly decent young people are in the company of these types of people.
Belizeans you need to step up to the plate and stop complaining about the crime situation when on the other hand you are condoning the same, stop being impressed by these so called bad boys and separate yourselves from this it is nothing but ignorance and if you encourage it and share in the spoils of their criminal activities you are as guilty as those that are committing these crimes and will soon be added to the endangered species list.
Where did he get the gun from, could be from anywhere, really. Nevertheless, a young woman’s life has ended without reason or cause. Above all, I hope this tragedy of this girl’s death is a warning to other young Belizean kids to stay away from guns and violence.
it is soo sad what is happening to our youths these days,i could remember while growing up,my mom didnt even want a male friend to come hail me at my house much less to be in there with a firearm. but to give the parent the benefit of the doubt that she was unaware of such, the girl was just unfortunate. i think if we try to pray more and stop worring about all the wrong things life would be so much better. Gun dont kill people,people kill people, im sure the young man has learnt his lesson,n we will jus wait n see what justice will come of that as todays justice system in Belize is so messed up and Corruped.
Everyone is judging ,why dont all of you who has so much negative to say look into your own mirror and fix your mistake before you try and fix someone elses, People have friend an I’m sure a lot of you have without bennifits so dont judge , this was a tragedy for our family I kow its freedom to speak but before you do ask yourself do you live in a glass house cause if you do not trow stone it might come bak and bite you
To My nice : I did not know you or even seen you born,and know I still wont get to know you, but in my heart you are my family it ended so suddenly , you had so much hope I talk to my sister and she tell me so much wonerdful thing about you, I see your picture and I see in your eyes my family tree so deep in them , I would have love to have meet you , now your light has dim into the dark but your memories will enrich our lives forever, and on that jurney as you go to meet those gone before you look down on us time after time or just a sign because you will be missed by everyone ,to the rest of my family we have to be strong for each other and walk with our head held up high and remember her from the day she entered this world until the day she left and we will see the beauty she brought to us all God bless you my nice and may your jurney be meet with peace
Sad : – ( … Another precious life lost by an IDIOT with a gun. Condolences goes out the family of Sadie Vernon. May GOD bless her soul and may she rest in peace. One Love.
ALL IM SAYING IS IF ITS A SAWED OFF ISNT THAT A BIG GUN HOW CAN HE BE WALKING AROUND CONCEALING THIS AH AH I DON’T BELIEVE IT .I THINK THIS GUN IS FOR SOME CRIMINAL THAT EITHER LIVES IN THAT SAME HOUSE OR LIVES AT THE BOYS HOUSE HOWEVER IT DON’T SEEM SO INNOCENT THE MOM LOOKS LIKE SHE KNOWS WHERE IT CAME FROM SHE DON’T LOOK SURPRIZED AND I BET THAT IF FORENSICS WAS KEPT ON DIFFERENT CRIMES THAT HAPPEN ON THE STREETS THEY WOULD FIND OUT THAT THIS GUN HAS BEEN IN A CRIME BEFORE .MY BROTHER WAS KILLED WITH A SIMILAR GUN WHILE DOING AN HONEST JOB .DO U KNKOW HOW MUCH THEY STOLE FROM MY BORTHER 150 DOLLARS AND NOONE EVER INVESTIGATED WHO DID IT NOONE WAS CHARGED EVERYTIME I SEE A CRIME HAPPEN WITH A SAWED OFF I REMEMBER MY BROTHER AND I WONDER MAYBE JUST WONDER WAS THIS GUN THE ONE USED ON MY BROTHER AND IS THIS THE WAY GOD MIGHT JUST BE PAYING A CRIMINAL BACK ? BY THE WAY MY MOTHER SUFFERED AND HAS NEVER BEEN THE SAME SO WILL THIS MOTHER. SO MAYBE IF THERE IS A MOTHER OUT THERE THAT KNOWS SOMEBODY THAT HAS A GUN MAYBE U SHOULD REPORT IT BEFORE THAT SOMEBODY COMES PLAYING IN UR HOUSE AND BY ACCIDENT SHOOT ONE OF YOUR LOVED ONES THATNK VERY MUCH
Just to clear the facts . to Sabuski You said in your statement my sister proberly new about the gun , well let me clear it for you at the time my sister was taking care of personal issue and trusted her child like most Belizean mothers do . She was not left alone we have a family house that share by most of our family, I understant what you are trying to say and each incident is totally different ,but both our famliy are vitim of crime, we may sit and come to our own conclusion but the only one who knows what really happen are those who are involved and the witness who saw what happen . The young man is caught because he was know to our family on the other hand your brother was rob and no one has been caugh t which is terrible , because no matter how it is put a life is a life and it should not be disregarded like it had no meaning. I’m not arguing with anyone I just want people not to judge and become jurry until all the facts are presented in a court of law and let us deal with our grief as respectiful as possible. thanks to everyone for your words we are reading an listening .
I am the uncle to Shennell Reyes.
I understnad everything everyone is saying but the facts is the facts, my niece (Shenell Reyes)
told the boy not to play with a gun in front of her and even worst in her mother’s house, so to me i think he MEANT TO KILL MY NIECE.
Belize is going through hard times but thats not a reason to shoot an innocent child.
shoot the one who u get the gun from.
i 100% believe and kno that he should be charge for murder no less.
i live in America ( Oakland CA)
and stuff like this dont happend here as an accident.
i would like for real and serous justice to prevail to this situation, 1st offense or not he know he has a REAL GUN, so theirfore he will do REAL DAMMAGE to someone, poor poor excause , there is withness that he was told to leave the premises, also he never did.
well we cannot turn back the hanes of time but i wish i could.
he is a bad bad young man and should be dealt with ASAP.
May My niece rest in peace, and may this be the end of this commentary, in respect to my niece and my family.
Jeremiah Burke
maybe that young man played with other smaller gunz in his past and by having a sawedoff gun at that time didn’t seem a cause for an alarm to go off, but by other allowing tha youngman to feel proud of his actions. i think that tha family of shennell should take this to a higher court for a better justice to be made…jah guides us everyday and i hope tha dude gets guidance in jail….forgive and let love guide us, we are humans and not animals…we need a better way to set those as examples for future cases….rah
we’ll see da kiht someday
RICHARD HOARE