Guns were blazing on the south side of Belize City yesterday evening. In a span of two hours, between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., three persons were shot two of them fatally, while one other person was hospitalized in a stable condition.
Around 4:00 p.m., John Crawford, a barber, was in his barber shop on Zericote Street, when he was accosted by a gunman, who shot him in the cheek. Crawford was rushed to the KHMH Emergency Ward admitted in a stable condition. About an hour later, gunshots rang out on Central American Boulevard, claiming the life of Michael Barrera, 52. Barrera had reportedly stopped at Sue’s Shop to make a purchase, when he was accosted by a gunman, who shot him in the back of the head, killing him instantly.
About 10 minutes later, there was another fatal shooting, at the long barracks, located at the corner of Ebony and Sarstoon Streets. Keith Courtenay, 46, was riding his bicycle when a man ran up behind him and opened fire. Courtenay died while undergoing treatment at the KHMH.