Carnage over the Easter weekend
Herman Lanza
It was an exceptionally violent Easter weekend across the country; one in which at least ten people were severely injured during separate shooting incidents. The carnage began on Holy Thursday with the murder of Leron Johnson. On Holy Saturday, two more would fall victim to gun violence when three armed men entered a property on Banak Street and fired indiscriminately, injuring twenty year old Joseph O’Brien and a fourteen year old minor. The spate of shootings would claim two more lives and the bloodbath continued through to this morning when a twenty-three year old was gunned down on Mahogany Street. News Five’s Isani Cayetano begins our coverage of the weekend bloodshed.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
Thirty-seven year old Herman Lanza, well known in the streets of the Old Capital for his many run-ins with the law, is tonight a dead man. Lanza is the second casualty in a string of unabated shootings across Belize City over the Easter weekend. According to a sister, who spoke with News Five under the condition of anonymity, Lanza was at Ricky’s Store at the corners of Casaurina and Pointsetta Streets on Saturday night when he was gunned down by an unknown assailant.
Voice of: Sister of Deceased
“He said he was going to buy a cigarette at the Chiney and when he went there we just heard a lot of shots and then that is when all of us ran out there. After the shots that was when I saw my brother down there on the ground lying down.”
Isani Cayetano
“How many times was he hit?”
Voice of: Sister of Deceased
“I don’t know. I don’t know but a lot of shots.”
Raphael Martinez
In March 2010, Lanza narrowly escaped death when he was shot multiple times, in the neck and shoulder, while standing on Hondo Street. Acting Police Press Officer Raphael Martinez told News Five today that no arrests have been made in Lanza’s murder.
Raphael Martinez, Acting Police Press Officer
“Acting upon information received police visited the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital where they saw the motionless body of Herman Lanza, thirty-two year old Belizean of 5 Black Orchid Street in Belize City, with several apparent gunshot wounds to the body, both hands, left side of upper abdomen, right side of the back and right side of the forehead. He was taken to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 9:30 p.m. Police have recovered four expended Aguila brand twelve gauge cartridges from the area, as well as two nine millimeter Luger brand expended shells.”
But the murder of Herman Lanza would only precede yet another brutal slaying in St. Martin’s area where twenty-two year old Kevin Pott and his girlfriend, eighteen year old Shanice Roland, were the target of an armed assault just two blocks north of where Lanza was slain.
Kevin Pott
Pott and Roland were walking along Mahogany Street when upon reaching Brick City Barbershop they came under heavy gunfire.
Raphael Martinez
“Police visited Mahogany Street in Belize City where they saw the motionless body of Kevin Pott, twenty two year old Belizean laborer of a Mahogany Street address with apparent gunshot wound to the back of the head, one gunshot wound to the right side of the stomach, one at the lower left back. Also they saw Shanice Roland, eighteen years of age, Belizean student of a Santa Barbara Street address in Belize City with an apparent gunshot wound to the right breast. Initial investigations revealed that on Monday at approximately 7:25 p.m. Kevin along with Shanice were walking on Mahogany Street when a male person rode up on a bicycle and fired several shots towards Kevin and Roland causing the fatal injury to Pott and then injuring Roland. Kevin Pott was transported to the K.H.M.H. where he was pronounced dead on arrival at approximately 8:38 p.m.”
Shanice Roland
By this morning, a little after six o’clock, gunshots rang out once again along Mahogany Street. When the smoke cleared another young man had been critically injured.
Raphael Martinez
“The shooting occurred in the vicinity of McKay Boulevard on Mahogany Street in which Michael Alexander Young, twenty-three year old Belizean was shot in the upper left side of his back. He was taken to the K.H.M.H. in a critical but stable condition. Police recovered sixteen expended nine millimeter shells from the scene. Police continue their investigation and no one has been detained regarding that.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.
This is another example of why we need THE PRISON FARM…THE SUSTAINABLE REHABILITATION CENTER.
There CRIMINALS can EARN THEIR KEEP and CONTRIBUTE TO SOCIETY at NO COST TO TAX-PAYERS….and they would realize that we ain’t playing.
And the carnage continues unabated what a useless gov and pm.
Ugh! Murder for passover. What a concept
What will GOB do about this crime situation?
What will GOB do about this crime situation?
They will do the same thing they have been doing about it for the last 5 years…….
They will sit back and continue to watch things detiorate like they have always been doing.
GANG TRUCE at its best
Hey Earl Grey, that prison farm is a great and positve idea. Very few people in our country offer solutuons. Instead they put blame and complain without making any positive contributions. You should really try suggesting it to parliament or start a petition that will garner thousands of signatures that will bring it to the fore front and lets see if GOB will take it into serious consideration.
well with all these things that is happening we should see that the coming of the lord is getting nearer and nearer everyday. the BIBLE SAYS WHEN YOU SEE VIOLENCE, PESTILENCE,WARS AND ECT. THE COMING OF THE LORD IS NEARING. WE CANT DO ANYTHING WE CANT BLAME GOB. THE BIBLE SAYS MALDITO EL HOMBRE QUE CONFIA EN EL HOMBRE. LET NOT PUT OUR TRUST ON MAN WHO WE ARE ALL SINNERS. WE CANT STOP WHAT IS HAPPENING, BUT ONLY GOD CAN. WE NEED TO REPENT FROM OUR BAD WAYS AND ACCEPT GOD AS OUR ONE AND SAVIOR. HE WILL BE THE ONE TO MANIFEST IN US. LET US LEAVE ALL THE VIOLENCE IN GOD HANDS. WITHOUT THE GOOD LORD WE CANT DO ANYTHING.LET US PLACE OUR TRUST IN GOD AND ONLY HIM. MAY GOD BLESS YOU.
its really sad to hear someone you knew that passes. herman was a cool person, not the greatest civilian but he sure doesnt deserve what happen to him. my heart goes out to his family especially his brother raymond who he was very close too.
@ do it right, your comment and that of earl gray is great, but judging form what we saw last year, parliment does not give a $#!% about rehabilitation. they won’t listen to the people, for example after the petition was sign by a lot of fplks to stop offshore driling, what was the government response? then there was media host such as jules and noble who tried to find all the flaws. if the parliment was interested in making things better, then they would not pay crimminals to desist from crime, if they want to make it better then desist from upholding those who terrorize other folks.
Parents need to take repsonsiblities for there children action. How could you keep quite when some of you parent know exactly what your kids are doing out there. Mother, father grandmother grandfather help with your family trouble child …..it takes a village to raise a child…..take them to church, talk to them about God…. these young people dont fair no one…. they need to realize who is God and what he is capable of doing. If thy starts to fair God…..then they will think twice before taking someone life. People do your part for a safer and better Belize.
Lets see if any of these murders will be bought to justice, or get 15yrs behind bars. Iam going to hold my breath on this one.
With all due respect to Early Grey and his obvious good intentions, we don’t need a prison farm. We need a gallows and an executioner for the killers, and for the other violent offenders who can’t shoot straight enough to kill, we need a Devil’s Island, where violent convicts can be dropped off for hard labour until they die. Period.
Only maybe 100 violent career criminals are doing almost all the carnage — but they have ruined life for 300,000 other people. IT IS IMMORAL FOR THE GOVERNMENT TO LET THOSE DOGS RUN THE STREETS.
Trials without juries are a good start, BUT WE NEED TO HIRE A HANGMAN AND KEEP HIM BUSY.
I’d say we shouldn’t blame everything on the gov. , even do yes they do play a major part in implementing some hard verdict for murderers but the blame should be more on the parents, where are they? do they ever talk to their sons about the killings they are doing affecting the regular people? they should be blame 100% for all this carnage. if we parents grow our kids from small with self esteem, respect to others and discipline I think we’d be living now in a better way than what we are living everyday in Belize now.
I agree with belizeanpride..It ALL STARTS AT HOME. Parental skills seems very low these days. We need to go back to the days when children and the youth respected themselves, parents and their elders. Today it is a HUGE PROBLEM RESPECT is out the window. It seems to be cool to be rude and the ruder you are the more respect you get….smh, the whole world is UPSIDE DOWN and the natural fabric of decency is declining fast. LIFE means nothing to these killers….They are not afraid of dying or killing, but obviously afraid of living because they carry guns to defend themselves, sad real sad.
I agree with Mary, parents are not taking the time to raise their children. From an early age the kids have to hustle to help the parents. The children drop out of school, parents dont care. Church is no longer a place for children as they are growing up. The young boys see the grown men sitting under trees drinking and playing cards talking fool, so they grow up to be what they see. Stop blaming the police, the Prime Minister and every body else, start blaming the parents who a lot of the time shield and protect their criminal children. The government needs to get tougher on the criminals and forget about making truce with gangs. It is impossible to make a deal with Satan and get something good out of the deal. Evil beget evil, there is one way to deal with this kind of evil, take dominion over it, put the bastards away FOREVER.
So discouraging to hear all the untimely deaths.
Only God..ONLY GOD can help Belize.
Thanks for your message, Jehova, let`s keep Belize in our prayers every day.
Go back to days when it takes a village to raise a child.
dammm this guy rafael martinez , why he keep onn saying motion less body
RIP MY BROTHER I SAY HANG THEY @$$ AND LET THEY MOTHER CRY LIKE MY MOTHER HAVE TO DO. STOP BLAMING THE PARENT FOR EVERY DAMN THING CANT BE WITH THEM ALL THE DAMN TIME AND IF THE GOVERNMENT STOP FILLING THEY DAMN WALLET AND HELP THE PEOPLE OF BELIZE THIS TYPE OF $#!% WANT HAPPEN AS MUCH WHERE DO YOU THINK THE DRUGS COME FROM REALLY PEOPLE
these criminals need to be wipe out off the streets of belize. when they are caught we need to take them to a shooting range and have the families of the victims come and blast them with some m16 or shotguns. revenge is sweeeet
They should start hanging again so when they murder they will get hang