by Kristen Ku
BELIZE CITY, Mon. Aug. 28, 2023
Orel Leslie, a 34-year-old Belize City resident, tragically lost his life in a shooting that is believed to be gang-related over the weekend. The incident, which took place at the junction of Regent and Albert Streets, occurred at the tail end of a month-long state of emergency in Belize City that had recently reached its conclusion, and is one of the first murders to take place in the city since the end of that SOE.
Around 9:00 p.m. on Sunday, Leslie was driving home in his red pickup truck when two assailants on a stolen motorcycle ambushed him. Multiple shots, potentially up to 15, were fired at him.
Despite suffering numerous gunshot wounds, Leslie tried to flee the scene. “He was going to his house when he was ambushed in that area, then he drove off after being shot and he crashed into a tree by St. John’s Cathedral,” ACP Hilberto Romero of the Belize Police Department told reporters.
Leslie was rushed to the Belize Medical Associates, but was declared dead upon arrival.
Police quickly apprehended the two alleged gunmen near the flag monument by the Pallotti High School roundabout. Insider sources suggest the men are from the Lake Independence area.
Investigators have identified a semi-automatic 9mm pistol and a 40-caliber weapon as those used in the attack. While only the 9mm pistol, equipped with two extended clips, has been retrieved, another stolen 9mm pistol, which had been reported missing two weeks earlier, was discovered in Leslie’s vehicle.
Leslie had been charged in 2011 with possession of an unlicensed firearm, and was acquitted twice in 2012 for the murder of James Norales. Additionally, he had faced three counts of drug trafficking in 2013.
Interestingly, this wasn’t the first attempt made to assassinate him. In 2019, he narrowly escaped a shooting on Bocotora Street, just 10 months after being acquitted of murder.
The police are exploring the possibility of gang involvement in Leslie’s murder, and are anticipating possible acts of retaliation. “We are setting up an operation to minimize the threat of retaliation; but yes, we expect some form of retaliation,” said Romero. The investigation is ongoing.
It’s worth noting that Leslie was the son of the late Homer Leslie, the proprietor of Safeway Drugstore.