by Charles Gladden
SAN PEDRO, Ambergris Caye, Mon. Aug. 14, 2023
In the early hours of Friday morning, August 11, a resident of the San Mateo area of San Pedro Town, nineteen-year-old Keon Jamal Quiroz, was executed by someone who impersonated police officers at his front door.
Reports have indicated that sometime before 3:00 a.m. Friday, Quiroz was at home when someone called for him from outside. The individual identified himself as a police officer and yelled out “police” to lure him out of his house. When Quiroz opened his door, he came face to face with his executioner, as multiple gunshots were fired, which wounded Quiroz and caused him to collapse in front of his home entrance, where he died shortly after.
The Regional Commander of the Belize Police Department’s Eastern Division, ACP Hilberto Romero, told reporters that they have yet to uncover a motive behind the island’s latest murder, but police are carrying out an investigation and have several persons in custody for questioning.
There have been a number of incidents in which shooting victims were lured out of their homes by gunmen who impersonated police officers. Today, ACP Romero pointed out that there is a specific protocol that police officers follow when identifying themselves to civilians, and those who are doubtful should contact a police station to verify if officers were sent to that location.