7 News Belize

Shellshocked City Sees 6 Murders In 30 Hours
posted (September 3, 2018)
And while that murder was in the south, we turn now to the city where this weekend saw a stunning and scary succession of murders, most of them gang related.

Between Friday afternoon and Saturday night - there were 6 murders in Belize City - 5 of them the result of gunplay on the southside.

It has shaken a city that's pretty numb to violence - and police were left scrambling to keep up with the bad guys - after a month of relative calm.

We start our coverage on Friday night - just before 8:00, when Francis Pollard was killed close to home.

Jules Vasquez reporting
Francis Pollard, known as Tito was an ex-con - trying to change his life. Sounds familiar, but he was working to make it real:

Cleophus Burgess, Former Employer & Uncle
"He was at the prison. He left from prison and he came and stayed with me here. We discussed and talk about that he really wanted to learn a trade. When he was at KOLBE Foundation they taught he a lot about Christianity and when he came from there, I found him to be very nice and very good in a spiritual way in his heart. So he came to me and told me that he really wanted to develop a gift of himself and I told him the only gift that I can give to you is whatsoever I know, so you could be very successful in life. I will teach you this trade and I had him making hinches, locks, brackets and everything."

Reporter
"So he was actively working engaging in the trade."

In the trade - but he was also a young man - and on Friday night he went here to a Friend's house - a few hundred feet away. They killed him before he got into the gate.

ASP Alejandro Cowo, OC - CIB
"Mr. Pollard was walking from Gentle Avenue into Doris Brooks and upon reaching a friend's house which is located at 6579 Doris Brooks, he was about to enter the gate when a male person just approached from behind and fired several shots at his direction causing the fatal injuries."

Reporter
"Was he targeted specifically for affiliation with any gang or was it simply that the shooter was looking for somebody, anybidy from Arlington?"

ASP Alejandro Cowo, OC - CIB
"What we suspect and we believe is that it was a consequence of the first murder that happened during the Friday evening."

Reporter
"However were they just trying to target anyone from the Arlington Area or was it specific to this particular young man?"

ASP Alejandro Cowo
"I think it would be anybody. It does not have to be somebody specific, but anybody who they had the opportunity to shoot."

Reporter
"From that Arlington Area?"

ASP Alejandro Cowo
"Yes."

And the Arlington drive area is red hot - the residents are calling for a police intervention:

Cleophus Burgess, Former Employer
"For this place to really stop, this crime would need to have something that is stable to have the police set and focus more about what is going on. Just don't come in the area and come out. They need a fix position."

ASP Alejandro Cowo
"We have seen that in that area there is an increase of shooting incidents and the police is looking at that. Probably they will be putting more police officers in that area there to try to calm down what is happening at this moment."

Cleophus Burgess, Former Employer
"We the people who lives in the hood, the residents, we lives in fear. Sometime 3:30 I wake up in the morning to scope around and find out what is going on, if any of the boys are passing through. This is the way how I live."

23 year old Pollard was the father of an infant child. Police have no suspects so far.

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