Jeffrey Roches, also known as “Small Roches,” a 35-year-old laborer of Belize City, was shot several times this morning just after 7 o’clock, as he was riding a bicycle and it is believed that the assailant may have ambushed him from behind. It was confirmed by the family that he was hit with at least three bullets.
Amandala met some of the family members at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) this morning, but they were too afraid to speak to us openly. We were able to find out; however, that he had left his girlfriend’s house and was riding at the corner of King Street and Amara Avenue on his way to work. That was when a lone gunman approached from a still unknown position and fired four shots at him. Two of those shots hit him on both sides of his lower torso, and one shot hit him in the neck, exiting through his lower chin. It is still unclear as to where the final bullet hit him. He was rushed to the hospital in an emergency transport.
The reason for the shooting is still unknown at this time.
Roches, we were told, had to be rushed into immediate surgery. He was conscious and talking, but in pain. He is listed as critical.
Unconfirmed reports to Amandala are that the police may have leads as to who may have shot Roches, because they may have had a chance to review footage from the cameras at Saint John’s Credit Union.
Roches’ brother, Phillip Roches, also known as “Big Roches,” was shot and killed on March 28, 2010, while cleaning a yard on East Canal, Belize City.
Just as in Phillip Roches’ murder, Jeffrey Roches’ shooting is believed by his family members to also be unprovoked. Jeffrey’s girlfriend told us that he doesn’t hang out at all in the area where he was shot; rather, he prefers to spend his time in the Saint Martin Area.
Earlier this evening, Amandala was able to speak to his mother, who told us that this is the second son to get shot, but that she also had a son by the name of Mark Saldano, who was stabbed to death in March 1995. She said that they felt lucky with Jeffrey, who survived his surgery this morning, and is currently under observation in the Intensive Care Unit at the KHMH.