High Court Orders Accused to Answer to Attempted Murder Charge

A Belize City man is back behind bars after the High Court ruled that there is enough evidence for him to answer to an attempted murder charge stemming from a 2020 shooting incident. Twenty-six-year-old Michael Gladden, also known as “Wannie,” is on trial for the attempted murder of thirty-three-year-old Karen Pinto. The incident occurred on December 20, 2020 in the London Bridge area of Antelope Street.  Yesterday, Justice Candace Nanton rejected a no-case submission made by Gladden’s attorney, Ian Gray. The defence had argued there was insufficient identification evidence linking Gladden to the shooting and no proof of joint enterprise.  However, Crown Counsel Joseph Perez countered that the complainant knew Gladden for about a year and a half prior to the incident and saw him before and during the attack. The Crown further argued that Gladden remained alongside the gunman throughout the encounter and was heard saying, “she done dead, let’s go,” after the victim was shot.  Justice Nanton ruled that the evidence presented was sufficient and ordered Gladden to answer to the charge.  The trial, which began last Friday in the High Court, has also heard testimony from the victim via video link from the United States, where she has since fled fearing for her safety.  In her testimony, Pinto recounted that on the evening of the incident she and her ex-common-law husband were heading to a nearby shop when they noticed Gladden and another man nearby. As they returned home, the men followed and opened fire.  Pinto told the court she ran and eventually jumped into a swampy area beneath the London Bridge while being shot at. She said the men pursued her into the mud and water where she was shot and pretended to be dead in order to survive. Believing she had died, the attackers left the area.  She was later assisted by a resident who called police.  Gladden was originally charged along with another suspect, Deandre Adolphus, who has since died in a separate shooting. Gladden now remains the sole accused as the trial continues.