“It Hurts, It Hurts”: Gun Violence Rocks Pomona Village

Two young men were shot and killed on New Year’s Eve in Pomona Village, leaving their families and neighbours in shock. Twenty-three-year-old Zion Samuels and twenty-two-year-old Luke Chavarria were attacked while socialising with friends outside Samuels’ home. A lone gunman opened fire, killing the two men, while four others escaped.

Neighbours and family are still grappling with the loss. Neidia Guzman, a close family friend, said:

“It hurts, it hurts, I cannot say no lie about Zion and he and Uri are good friends from little boys, football playing, everyday Uri at his house playing, entertaining, playing with the brother. The family knows him very well. We can’t say anything bad. He goes to work, come home, his kids, living at home. We feel it, our family feel it because they grow up with me.”

Candles now mark the spot where the young men took their last breath. Police say the motive remains unclear, though the property has been the site of past drug‑related operations.

Samuels’ father, Mark Samuels, expressed his grief, saying only, “My son da mi wa easy going person mein. They coulda mi beg fi something more than do that. That’s all I got fi say mein.”

Police say the suspect fled the scene on foot and remains at large.