Another Attempt at Jahreem Staine Puts Innocents in Danger

Another bold shooting in Belize City has once again put Jahreem Staine at the center of a string of automatic weapon attacks, and tonight those repeated brushes with death are raising fresh questions about public safety and the risk to innocent bystanders. News Five’s Shane Williams looks at Staine’s latest close call.

 

Shane Williams, Reporting

Jahreem Staine, also known as ‘32’, is a prominent street figure and the center of several violent cases, but what worries police even more is the string of public shootings swirling around him. On September 3^rd, 2025, just minutes after walking out of the Magistrate’s Court, gunmen opened fire on him along busy Coney Drive near Buttonwood Bay Nazarene Primary School, spraying nearly three dozen shots as residents and schoolchildren dove for cover. Staine drove away unharmed.

 

And less than a month later, chaos erupted again, this time on the Phillip Goldson Highway, where gunmen chased down Staine’s vehicle and unleashed a barrage of shots that sent commuters scrambling and wounded two B.D.F. soldiers before the shootout ended near a busy call center and Horizon Academy; police have since charged two men with attempted murder.

 

And even with multiple attempts on his life and repeated warnings from police, Staine is back out on bail, this time on charges tied to contempt of court and alleged gang activity, even as he still stands accused in the attempted murder of rival Jimmy Rojas, a reminder that his presence in public has sparked violent retaliation before.

 

And barely hours after walking free on bail, gunfire erupted again, this time on a public basketball court in Lake‑I, where automatic weapons sprayed the area, hitting Jahreem Staine and three other young men as bystanders ducked and scattered; all four were rushed to the hospital and are now in stable condition.

 

ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer

“ What we have learned so far, and I must say that the incident was captured on police surveillance camera, is that those four male persons along with others were on the bleachers in front of the basketball court when a male person emerged from behind the bleachers and went onto the court and fired several shots, which resulted in the aforementioned injuries. The surveillance camera and the footage there from is being meticulously scrutinized with a view of apprehending these assailants or this assailant.”

 

Shane Williams

“ Is there anything that the police can do to prevent him from being at public events like these who are hot?”

 

ASP Stacy Smith

“I know that the conditions of his bail Included that he ought not to be in certain places around certain time. However, certainly when that matter will be addressed, which I anticipate it will be at the high court it will certainly be for more stringent provisions to be placed. You would also note that he was recently released, I believe, on eleventh of February and it was just, I think a few days after that he was once again arrested for being in breach of his bail conditions. The prosecutor objected to bail. He changed his plea to guilty and he was fined and that was the reason that he was out on the street. However, as I stated, we’re in the process of having the necessary documents be placed before the high court to address the matter in that venue.”

 

And what’s fueling even more outrage tonight is that every one of these shootings, from Coney Drive to the highway, to a neighborhood basketball court packed with kids, has unfolded in public spaces where families go about their daily lives. Should the courts, police, and lawmakers rethink how they deal with high‑risk suspects to keep the public safer? Shane Williams for News Five.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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