One dead, two wounded in execution style shooting

Observers in both the criminal and law enforcement communities will tell you that there is an ebb and flow to the pace of violent crime in the city … and today what has been a period of tension on the streets was punctuated by a burst of gunfire that has left one man dead and two in the hospital. News Five’s Janelle Chanona has the story.

Janelle Chanona, Reporting
At approximately two this afternoon, twenty-eight year old Kevin Parks was executed near his mother?s home on Euphrates Avenue.

Subsequent investigations have since revealed that prior to the shooting, two gunmen ambushed Parks and a friend in the backyard of the property, chased the victim through the home and then gunned him down on the sidewalk across the street.

According to eyewitnesses who declined to speak on camera, the unmasked shooters fired as many as eight times at Parks. We understand tonight that as the young man lay bleeding on the ground, one of the gunmen stood over him and fired again.

The critically wounded Parks was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital but he later succumbed to his wounds.

Word of the murder spread quickly and heartbroken relatives rushed to the scene.

Parks had only been in Belize since Tuesday following his deportation from the United States. While police have yet to establish a clear motive, family members tell News Five that the young man was attacked for what he may have witnessed when his brother Darryl ?Bagga? Jones was murdered in May 2002.

Janelle Chanona
?They were stalking this individual and his friends??

Superintendent Chester Williams, Head Crimes Investigation Branch
?Well basically it want to seem so because they were hanging out in the back of the yard. Obviously they must have been watching them for a period of time to have been able to know that they were in backyard. We have some people we?ll be looking at we will be focussing our investigation on a group of persons. At this time I would not give too much details because it might jeopardize investigation.?

As officials collected evidence at the scene, authorities learnt that two other shooting victims had been rushed to the hospital. Thirty eight year old Charles Moss, Kevin?s uncle was shot once in the upper back less than a block away from the murder scene while twenty nine year old Jose Pech was shot twice, in the thigh and leg, on Cairo Street. It is believed all three incidents are connected.

Chester Williams
?We do not want this to go down on the books as an unsolved mystery. We will do out best to ensure that we bring closure to this case like we have done to many others in the past. I can assure the families that the police under my command will be doing everything we possibly can to find the persons who are responsible for it. We will not leave any stone unturned.?

Kenny Moss, Victim?s Uncle
?I deh inna wah different feel from he. I dah wah family man. I no know weh dem li bwoy dem the do.?

Janelle Chanona
?What would you want to saw to other young people who are caught up in this violence??

Kenny Moss
?Deh young people gat they own mind you know young lady. It?s just sad. As I seh, I no know my lee nephew and thing dem do but I know my bredda and he cool. I know he and he is a Christian and everything.?

Chester Williams
?The fact that we have a murder at two does not mean that crime is not out of control. It will happen from time to time and the police cannot prevent from all crimes from occurring. We will do our best yes to prevent as much as we probably can, but when it does happen the best we can do is bring proper closure to is by solving the crime. So I would like to tell the neighbourhood that it is not a situation to be panicking over. If you see something strange in your neighbourhood call the police and let the police know and we could give measures and give advance as to what could be done in order to prevent anything from getting worse.?

Up to newstime tonight, no arrests have been made.

Reporting for News Five, I am Janelle Chanona.

Parks had been deported from the United States for illegal entry, following an arrest for firearm possession in the state of New York.