BELMOPAN, Mon. Feb. 14, 2022– At about 11:15 p.m. on Saturday night, February 12, a vehicle ferrying eight persons from Stars Restaurant in Belmopan came under fire from the occupant(s) of an SUV who unleashed a torrent of bullets at the van. One of those bullets fatally wounded a young mother, Karina Andrews, 20, in the head. She would be pronounced dead shortly after, while being treated at the Western Regional Hospital.
Andrews and the other occupants of the vehicle had been socializing at Stars Restaurant in Belmopan, when they reportedly noticed a suspicious individual making multiple trips in and out of the establishment. The group, reportedly unnerved by that person’s movements, decided to leave the establishment and were heading to their homes in a white van when an SUV overtook them at a speed bump near Blue Moon Restaurant, at the entrance to Belmopan. Over 20 expended shells would later be recovered from the scene of the ambush—a clear indication of the deadly intent of the person(s) in the SUV, who unleashed a hail of bullets that not only caused Andrews’ death but injured several of the other persons in the van.
The other persons who were injured during the incident were identified as Joshua Jones, Devin Vasquez, and Emerson Rhaburn, all of whom are from the Belmopan area.
When asked by reporters during a police press briefing on Monday whether Karina Andrews was the intended target of the shooters, Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams said that she could have been the target or it could have been one of the male passengers of the vehicle. According to COMPOL Williams, Andrews had a few run-ins with the law in the past, but had no history of violence.
“Perhaps she could be [the target]; there’re other persons who could’ve been the intended target, and we do believe that motive is gang-related. Her name is not new to the police; I’m not saying that she’s a gang member, but you know that if it is that you affiliate yourself with gang members, then you become a target as well, and it is rather unfortunate, because the truth is no one deserve to die the way she did, and she is not known to be a violent person and it’s just a matter of her affiliation,” Commissioner Williams said.
COMPOL Williams told reporters that their priority is to arrest the persons responsible for the shooting before any retaliation can occur as a result of this murder.
“Our priorities are to find the perpetrators of this crime and ensure they are charged, and yes we might look at mediation to avert any possible retaliation, but we want to ensure that the persons responsible are found and sent to prison,” Commissioner Williams said.
He stated that with the help of surveillance footage, investigators were able to gather useful information, so police are hopeful that they will be able to make a formal arrest shortly.
Currently, the vehicle used in Saturday night’s murder is in police custody along with two persons of interest who police believe are connected to the shooting. But no charges have been filed as yet.
Darida Galvez, the mother-in-law of Karina Andrews, recounted the last time that she saw and spoke to Karina.
“I talk to Karina about after 8:00 that same night, because I had the baby. She came to pick up the baby, because she wasn’t going anywhere. My son brought her to pick up the baby, because I had the baby from the afternoon, and they came. But when they came, the baby was sleeping so my son was trying to wake the baby, then she told me she wanted to go out, right in front of my son, and my son told her, ‘no, you’re not going,’then she’s like, ‘I want to go, I work hard, I need a little break’, so, between that time my son was trying to wake the baby, I guess for her to stay, so I told my him, ‘Leave her, let her go, and watch the baby’, and that’s when he said, ‘okay, I’ll take you,’ and he was the one that dropped them at Stars Club,” she said.
Galvez recalled what kind of person her daughter-in-law was. “She was very kind, she was always happy, always smiling. Karina had a big smile on her face; she was a party person. When she walked [into] any room she would light up, she was very loving. Karina was a happy young girl.”
The location at which the shooting occurred—near Blue Moon Restaurant—is known by Belmopan residents to be dimly lit and has been a prime area in which criminals target vulnerable citizens. The owner of Blue Moon Restaurant, Marwan Haddad, said that he has been pleading with the Belmopan City Council to repair the lights in the area, since the lights became non-functional days after being installed.
“They’ve been out for a long time. They come in and fix them, and it takes an act of congress to come and fix them, but when they come, they work for a few days and they go out and it takes them a long time to back to fix them. And this corner is very dark, so lots of things happen right here because there’s no lighting to help the people. They need to fix those lights, put brighter ones if they can.” Haddad said.
Karina Andrews was the mother of a 1-year-old son.