Anthony McKenzie, a 41-year-old father of one and a resident of corner Ebony and Mopan Street, has been murdered, after having been ambushed in his own backyard while filling a bucket of water, and shot multiple times.
According to the police, the shooting incident occurred on Monday, March 22, around 9:15 p.m. McKenzie was fetching some water in his backyard when he was approached by an unknown individual who then fired shots at him.
According to McKenzie’s brother, Stanley McKenzie, 34, Anthony was shot once in the left inner leg, three times in the left part of his buttocks and in the lower part of the back, indicating that he had been trying to escape.
McKenzie was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH), where he later succumbed to his injuries about an hour later, around 10:20 p.m.
Stanley also explained “ I rushed to the hospital after I heard that my brother had been shot, I tried to question him about the shooter, but he didn’t know who it was, all he could say [was] that it was a teenage boy.”
McKenzie, also known as Tony, or Ninja, was, according to Stanley, a very friendly and “humble Rastaman,” who earned an honest living by doing little jobs around the neighbourhood, including running errands, construction work, cleaning chicken for Pratt’s, and working at the car bodyworks shop, as well.
“My brother got shot innocently; it seems as though the young man who shot him was being chased by someone at the time, and in the back of my brother’s yard is very dark. You can’t really see anything good at night, so that’s basically what happened. The youth was probably surprised and in fright, fired shots.”
Stanley told Amandala, “He dah roots; he does everything for everybody, always trying to make a difference in his community in whatever way he could, and being very humble throughout.”
“We always try to uplift the youths of our neighbourhood by conducting little games and sporting events to keep them occupied and out of trouble,” Stanley said, referring to a basketball and football team he and his brother formed, called “Ebony Lake.”
“The football and basketball team is made up of all different types of people, from teenagers to older men; we always conduct our little meetings right in the same yard where they killed my brother,” he further noted.
Stanley also mentioned that on the said Monday night, he, along with the team, met in MckKenzie’s backyard for a meeting before their “test match” at the MCC Grounds, after which they left for the field, and Anthony McKenzie stayed home.
“He da all about having a good time; no matter what, he will have fun in whatever he does,” Stanley stated.
Anthony McKenzie was set to migrate to America this year, as he was waiting for his paperwork to finish. The family is now trying cope with this tragic and unforeseen loss while remaining (as they put it) “humble.”
Police investigation still continues, as there are still no suspects in this latest, senseless murder.