17-year-old boy shot dead outside home in Belize City, police detain suspect

Belize: Derrick Morris, 17, was shot in the Lake Independence area of Belize city on Sunday night, June 14. The incident took place outside his home suspectedly over a petty bicycle issue.

The deceased’s house is located on Brown Street. The incident unfolded outside his home only when he answered an unknown call on his house door and was shot twice shortly after he opened the door. He sustained serious injuries from the gunshots and was taken to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH). However, he succumbed to the injuries and breathed his last in the hospital.

The mother of the deceased, Natasha Westby, recalls that he was just about to have supper with his whole family when the incident occurred. The shooters called on the door and intruded unknowingly before shooting Derrick. She was unable to grapple with the loss of her youngest child as the local media reported.

The reason behind the incident is apparently a minor bicycle feud as per preliminary police assessments, yet no established findings have been reported.

He used to read in the Sadie Vernon Technical High School and was one day ahead of sitting for his final exams the day he was shot. The school remembers him as a kind hearted footballer who turned 17 less than a week ago.

This is the third loss from the same school this year. One of the deceased died from illness, however, another loss was reportedly due to a knock down violent incident. The third and latest loss is of the 17-year old Derrick.

An official statement from his alma mater read, “The Board of Management, Administration, Staff, and Student Body extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the parents, family, relatives, and friends of our beloved student, Derrick Morris, on his untimely passing”. A memorial altar was dedicated to Morris at the school.

Leader of the Opposition, Tracy Taegar-Panton also issued a statement of her own saying, “The pain is deep, and it stabs at the very soul of our nation. Here we go again! Belize has lost another son to senseless gun violence on our city streets.” 

An 18-year old has been detained as a suspect for now but the identity of the suspect remains undisclosed.

Meanwhile, the whole nation condemned the loss of another young life in Belize city collectively.