56 year old taxi operator executed on Bank Street

Norman Thompson

Two men lost their lives violently in separate incidents in Belize City over the weekend while a third was viciously chopped to death up north. The bloodshed started in the Old Capital on Saturday morning. The life of a taxi driver on duty was cut short when he was executed near Banak Street.  Norman Thompson died almost instantly and his vehicle was extensively damaged when it collided into a fence. Police are following all leads, but it is likely that Thompson was lured to his death because he was targeted as he dropped off a passenger. The gunman did not rob him of his cash, but took his cell phone. News Five’s Isani Cayetano spoke to the grief-stricken family.

Isani Cayetano, Reporting

Fifty-six-year-old Norman Thompson, a cab driver of Belize City, lies dead inside the mortuary at the K.H.M.H., following an early morning shooting near Banak Street.  Described by family and friends as vigilant, Thompson had presumably taken a job dropping off a customer in the area when he came under attack by an unknown assailant.

Sharette Willoughby, Common-Law Wife of Deceased

“Basically the police had told me that they responded to a shooting at Banak Street.  They didn’t say exactly where on Banak Street but they said that they found the lifeless body of one Norman Thompson in a green Prism and he was shot to the back twice.”

It is believed that whilst fleeing his attacker, Thompson lost control of the vehicle and collided head-on into an adjacent fence.  He was discovered moments later by officers responding to the scene.

Alden Dawson

Supt. Alden Dawson, Commander, Precinct One

“The driver was still seated at the time behind the steering wheel.  A check made on the driver where they saw two apparent gunshot wounds, one to his upper right back and one to the upper right shoulder.”

The vehicle was extensively damaged, its front bumper broken off and the rear, right passenger window shattered.  At home in their beds at the time of the incident was Sharette Willoughby, Thompson’s wife of ten years, and her daughter.  She describes receiving the nerve-racking phone call.

Sharette Willoughby

“Ah spin round and round, noh know weh fi do.  Ah hold mi mouth, ah gaan hail she and I tell ahn, ah seh “Aaliyah get up! Get up!”  Ih seh, “Ma da what?”  Ah tell ahn dehn seh Norman dead.  She ask me how, I seh, “I noh know”  Ah tell ahn ah seh, “I cyant tell yo nothing but I noh comfortable.”  Now all of a sudden a staat to di spin round and round like I noh know weh fi go and weh fi do but di police di wait so I just jump een a di vehicle.”

Sharette Willoughby

When they arrived at the destination Willoughby would indeed identify the mortally injured taxi operator as her common law husband.  Superintendent Alden Dawson:

Sharette Willoughby

“The investigation at that point revealed that the taxi driver, who is Mr. Norman Thompson had apparently taken some passengers through that same unnamed alley and apparently at the time the passenger alighted the vehicle someone fired two shots at the car.  We believe the two shots may have hit him at that time and he drove off in high speed through that alley into the fence where he landed.”

Isani Cayetano

“Is it normal practice for him to have stayed out that hour in the morning to run his business?”

Sharette Willoughby

“Well, he’s a taxi man that works on call.  Ih woulda deh bout da friends’ house or whateva but in regards to picking up customers he was a very strict taxi man, he works on only calls at night.  If you want him to take you anywhere you have to call him and he would scrutinize you properly and ask a whole lot of questions before he comes and gets you and ih even tell di people dehn weh ih pick up da night, “I noh usually do this.”

That night he took a chance which unfortunately ended in tragedy.

Sharette Willoughby

“To me, honestly it doesn’t seem like a robbery, it seems like a setup.  Only di police can prove me wrong because how can you rob someone and not take the wallet but yet take only the phone.  I’m thinking that the person that called him last to lure him to that place realized that the information would be on the phone because da wah good hi-tech phone ih have.  So that person probably carried the phone and left him there for dead.”

This morning, that section of the enclosure was being repaired.  The police, on the other hand, are stumped as to why someone would want Thompson dead.

Supt. Alden Dawson

“At this time we’re still in search of a motive since we don’t believe it was a robbery because of what we found at the scene.  So we’re still, the investigation is ongoing and at this time we have a small lead that we are looking at, at this time but it’s too early to say how far it will go.”

Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.