New Year’s Eve became an occasion, not of celebration, but of tragedy, for the family of 9-year-old Aaron Michael Myvette Pope, who was shot and killed at around 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 31, 2011 – a loss made more stinging by the fact that he was in bed at his George Street home when he was killed.
At press time tonight, police still have no definitive motive for Pope’s murder, and no suspects have been detained.
According to police, Aaron Pope, his sister, 17, and his mother were all sleeping at their home at #25 George Street. A still-unknown, armed assailant arrived early that morning, invaded the family home, and started firing indiscriminately at the rooms.
Pope’s mother, Michelle Myvette, spoke to the media, saying that she was awakened by the sounds of gunfire. Her daughter ran into her room and screamed that she had been hit in the left elbow by one of the bullets.
Myvette said that she immediately turned to her son, and realized that he had been shot. She said that she tried to talk to him, but there was no response. The assailant, meanwhile, escaped.
Myvette said that they rushed her son to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH), and when the doctors examined him, they realized that the bullet had passed through his brain.
According to Myvette, the doctors said that they could do nothing to help him, and at around 8 a.m. on New Year’s Day, he died.
Although there is no motive announced officially, there is wide speculation that the attack on Pope’s home was retaliation for a shooting on the premises of the Palm Island Night Club, which happened earlier that night.
In that incident, Renan Briceño, Jr., 32, a marketing officer for Speednet Communications, allegedly shot Dale Tillett, 19, and Brandon Tillett, 25.
Police say that Brandon Tillett was treated and released, but Dale Tillett died today, Thursday.
Shortly after the Palm Island shooting, according to residents, a barrage of gunshots was heard in the Taylor’s Alley area (a.k.a Pregnant Alley), although no one was injured. Minutes after that, Aaron Pope and his sister were shot. George Street and Taylor’s Alley gangs are known to be in a bitter rivalry at the moment.
Coincidentally, Elbert Pope, Aaron’s father, was shot and killed on June 22, 2010, and his murder is still unsolved.