By Belize Live News Staff: A quiet Tuesday night turned tragic in Orange Walk Town as 20-year-old Carlos Canelo, a local labourer, was ambushed and fatally shot while returning home. Police reports indicate Canelo had been speaking with a female companion on Rio Grande Street before heading home.
As he entered his yard on Monkey River Street, an unknown assailant, who appeared to have been lying in wait, opened fire, striking Canelo multiple times. Despite the rapid response of authorities alerted by the sound of gunshots, Canelo succumbed to his injuries at the Northern Regional Hospital.
Investigators collected six 40-caliber expended shells and three slugs from the scene, and a post-mortem examination revealed Canelo sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his head, chest, left arm, and left foot.
While a motive remains unclear, authorities are treating this as a targeted attack and are urging anyone with information to come forward.