Benque woman, 71, killed by machete-wielding attacker
Black Immigrant Daily News
Miguel Angel Gomez, 68, a man with an alleged history of chopping incidents and other offensive behavior, has been charged with the murder of 71-year-old Ramona Morales Ramirez.
by Khaila Gentle
BENQUE VIEJO, Cayo District, Mon. Oct. 3, 2022
Ramona Morales Ramirez, 71, had been walking from her brother’s home on Church Street in the town of Benque Viejo on Saturday morning when she was attacked and repeatedly chopped by Miguel Angel Gomez, who also resides on that street. Police at this time are still trying to find out what prompted the 68-year-old man to commit such a crime; however, Ramirez’s son is claiming that Gomez has shown erratic behavior for a number of years but has never been held accountable under the law.
“For someone to be walking on the street that they lived … and just being attacked by a neighbor, we would want to answer all the questions,” said Police Communications Director, ASP Fitzroy Yearwood in an interview on Monday.
“Yes, we have charged him for the crime committed, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t canvassing the area to see what we can get that will help us to find a motive for that murder,” he later added.
Esduid Ariel Morales, the son of Ramona Morales Ramirez, told PLUS TV reporters that, many years ago, Miguel Angel Gomez allegedly smashed one of the glass windows at his family’s home. The 68-year-old labourer also often made lewd comments towards both Morales’ mother and grandmother. He had a habit of urinating in public, and most notably, he allegedly chopped at least two other persons in the past. Even more shocking, however, is the fact that, according to Morales, Gomez had previously attempted to chop his mother back in 2019. He stated that the family filed a report, but claims that, due to political intervention by a UDP minister, Gomez faced little to no repercussions.
When Ramona Morales Ramirez left home, she told her son that she would be going to feed the family’s ducks and chickens. After a while, however, he noticed that his mother was taking a while to return. At first, he assumed that she had simply stopped along the way to talk with a friend. He was sitting inside their home when he heard several screams. He looked out the window and noticed a woman leaning forward, not realizing at first that it was his mother.
“I thought dogs were attacking her,” said Morales, who immediately ran outside to render aid. “When I was just in the middle of the street … I saw it was my mother,” he said.
She was bleeding profusely from a cut wound to her upper shoulder. Another of his relatives who was nearby at the time told him that the assailant, Gomez, had inflicted two chop wounds on her. The seventy-one-year-old woman was rushed to the San Ignacio Hospital, but succumbed to her injuries.
“My mother, on her left hand, she was bringing a bed sheet with dirty clothes that she was going to wash and a couple bags of groceries that she had bought at the shop—brown sugar, Nutrioli oil, and Blue Bonnet margarine; that’s what she used to do coconut crust. And she did not drop those things when she got hit,” said Morales.
It wasn’t until she crossed the drain in front of her home that she dropped her bags and leaned against the wall. Ms. Morales later collapsed. Her son made attempts to stop her bleeding with a towel while waiting for transportation to the hospital.
A number of neighbors saw Gomez fleeing the scene.
“He just waited to see that my mom was already going to die, then he ran across the creek, across the highway, and then up that mountain,” recounted Morales.
Ariel Morales says that he believes Gomez’s animosity toward his mother stemmed from a property dispute. He also said that he does not believe Gomez suffers from any kind of mental illness and blames the failure of the justice system, as a result of political interference, for his mother’s death.
“He’s just evil, and they did not punish him accordingly,” he said.
On Monday, residents from the surrounding area, along with friends and family, held a candlelight memorial in honor of Ms. Morales Ramirez. According to her son, she will be remembered fondly as a hardworking woman who was always willing to sacrifice for the sake of her family.
NewsAmericasNow.com
