In the early morning hours of Friday, KREM WUB Morning Vibes morning show host, Evan “Mose” Hyde heard gunshots just outside the window of his St. Martin de Porres home, and while blast of gunshots on the Southside of Belize are by no means rare events, what Hyde would come to discover the following day certainly is.
In an interview with our newspaper today, Hyde told us that on Friday morning, a neighbor came across to his home and asked if he saw his vehicle. At this time, Hyde had no clue what his neighbor was talking about.
He went outside and discovered that the passenger window of his Toyota Tacoma had been smashed, and lying on the seat were two Molotov cocktails – a cheap explosive made from fuel-soaked rags placed inside regular glass bottles.
It was about 6:30 on Friday morning when Hyde learned what was done to his vehicle, and he immediately called the police, who were on the scene within 15 minutes. At press time, however, police have not made any arrest in connection with the incident.
Head of CIB, Aaron Guzman, told Amandala that he considers the attack very serious, as the intention was apparently to set a fire to Hyde’s vehicle, which could have exploded and also set neighboring homes afire.
Guzman said that attacks with Molotov cocktails are rare and are usually seen in the northern districts of Orange Walk and Corozal, and during times of “high-tension,” like the protests of 2005 when there was back and forth between the unions cum private sector organizations and the Government.
The police indicated that there was an attempt to light one of the Molotov cocktails, said Hyde.
He recounted that it was approximately 2:30 on Friday morning when two gunshots, fired right by his window, woke him. He peeped outside, saw nothing, and so went back to bed.
According to Guzman, police who were on patrol in the area had heard gunshots that night, but did not know of the incident with Hyde’s vehicle and could not confirm if the shots were coming from the same location.
Guzman said that police continue to investigate, but so far they have no idea what the motive for the incident could be.
Hyde told us today, however, that he only learned this weekend that a threatening call had been made to KREM FM on-air technician, Tony G., on Wednesday morning while he was hosting the morning show.
The message the male caller gave the technician was “Tell Mose slow down or he will get hurt,” Hyde told us.
One neighbor heard somebody running through the yard after the incident with the vehicle, and other neighbors heard gunshots, Hyde added.
“My belief is, it was a message that was being sent,” said Hyde. He told us that the major topic that Wednesday was narco-traffickers.
It is high time that we become our brother’s and sister’s keeper, because if people don’t speak up when they witness crimes being conducted against others, then they impair the ability of the police to bring closure to a case, said Guzman. He urges anyone who might have witnessed the attack on Hyde’s vehicle to file a statement with the police.
Evan “Mose” Hyde is the manager of KREM TV. He and Kalilah Enriquez host the WUB each weekday morning.
On Thursday morning, CBC Cable announced on-air that Hyde – a very outspoken, popular and highly respected host – had won a recent competition for Media Personality of the Year, after the company’s management read an impressive essay about the personal impact Hyde had had on a lady through the talk show.