Gunman Open Fire on Dangriga Fish Shed

An innocent bystander is recovering from gunshot wounds after brazen gunfire erupted in Dangriga over the weekend, highlighting rising fears about gang violence spreading into public spaces. The shooting happened early Saturday evening near a busy fish shed along Riverside Street, an area frequented by residents and workers. Police say the victim, thirty-four-year-old fisherman Berchel Balthazar, was not the intended target but was struck when gunmen opened fire from a motorcycle before fleeing the scene. Investigators are now combing through surveillance footage as they work to identify those responsible.

 

ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer

“Police are investigating a shooting incident which resulted in the injury of Berchel Balthazar, a thirty-four-year-old Belizean fisherman of Wagierale area, Dangriga Town. The investigation commenced on Saturday seventeenth January, 2026 at approximately 6:15 PM when officers in that jurisdiction were alerted of shots being fired near the fish shed on the south of Riverside Street in Dangriga Town. Checks were made at that location and the scene was processed and the officers visited the Southern Regional Hospital where Mr. Balthazar was observed with apparent gunshot wounds. What we know so far is that two male persons onboard a motorcycle went to that location and fired shots towards that area, which resulted in the injury of Balthazar. Mr. Balthazar is not believed to have been the intended target in this incident, and the investigators have retrieved a number of video footage, which are being reviewed with a view to furthering this investigation.”