Mom of Three Shot Dead at Da Buzz Lounge

A mother of three was shot dead inside a lounge Thursday evening. The security officer scheduled to be on duty had not yet arrived.

Surveillance footage of the scene shows Salma Raquel Orellana Funez, 34, at the bar inside Da Buzz Lounge on the Phillip Goldson Highway at around 6:30pm when a man in a white shirt, black pants, and a white bucket cap walked in and approached her.

The video shows the two speaking briefly before pulling out a firearm and opening fire. “The male person then turned and fired several shots at two other female workers that were inside the lounge,” police reported.

26-year-old waitress Shayanta Williams and 32-year-old bartender Cardova Neal were hospitalised with gunshot wounds and are “both listed in a stable condition”, police confirmed.

Funez was pronounced dead at KHMH at 9:16pm. She leaves behind three children.

Da Buzz Lounge management issued an online statement this morning disclosing that the officer on duty “had not yet arrived at the time the incident occurred.”

Management described Funez as “more than just a valued employee”, adding that she was “a cherished member of our Da Buzz family.”

The lounge management added, “The events that unfolded were completely unexpected and have left all of us devastated and searching for understanding in the face of such heartbreaking violence.”

The lounge is closed for the remainder of the weekend. The gunman remains at large. The matter is under investigation by Detective Constable Nestor Cardenas.