Belchina Bridge Shooting That Injures Doris Grant

A Belize City woman is recovering in hospital after she was shot while travelling across the Belchina Bridge in the early hours of this morning. Police say the incident happened shortly after 1:00 a.m., when Doris Grant was travelling in a black Nissan Titan pickup along with two other individuals. While crossing the bridge, the vehicle came under gunfire, leaving Grant injured and prompting a police investigation. Grant’s name has previously appeared in Love FM reports. In 2024, she was slapped with multiple charges ranging from obtaining property by deception, obtaining money transfer by deception, and theft, in connection with an alleged multi-million-dollar land fraud scheme in northern Belize. She was accused of duping several business owners by holding a fake land clinic, with reports indicating she orchestrated a scam in Shipyard Village that saw persons posing as employees of the Lands Department collecting money for phony parcels of land. Grant maintained her innocence, saying she believed she was being targeted by the state. In June 2024, Grant described at the time as having gone from gang affiliate to land scammer to a victim of attempted murder to an inmate at the Belize Central Prison appeared in court alongside her common-law partner, Austin Underwood, and was denied bail. That same month, Grant and Underwood suffered shooting injuries while travelling home in Belize City, following an outing at a concert. However, police have not indicated any connection between those past matters and this latest attack. During today’s police press briefing, investigators said they have not yet established a motive for the shooting and have not determined whether Grant or the vehicle was the intended target. Here’s what police had to say.

ACP Hilberto Romero, Head, National Crimes Investigation Branch: “Police responded to a shooting incident at the Belchina Bridge. Upon arrival they learned that the persons were in a vehicle and persons came and fired several shots towards the direction. The vehicle was driven to the Karl Heusner where Doris Grant was observed with several gunshot injuries. She is listed in the critical condition at this time. Information is that they were driving across the bridge when three male persons approached the vehicle and all three fired several shots towards the vehicle causing the injuries to Grant. She was along with Austin Underwood and Andres Orozco, a Colombian national. We are currently reviewing video footage and seeking persons in regards to this shooting. We have several operations ongoing at this time to prevent any form of retaliation. We have several operation units in the city doing patrols.”

Police say approximately 30 expended shell casings were recovered from the scene, and preliminary investigations indicate that a 9-millimeter pistol was used in the attack. No suspects have been detained, and the investigation remains ongoing.