Shenyon Barrow Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Cemetery Road Shooting

Twenty-year-old Shenyon Levi Barrow has pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in connection with the fatal shooting of Floyd McFadzean. The plea was entered yesterday in the High Court before Justice Derick Sylvester.  Barrow, who was originally charged with murder at the age of eighteen, was further remanded to the Belize Central Prison following today’s court appearance. Acting on the advice of his attorney, Michael Peyrefitte, Barrow pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The plea was accepted by the Crown, represented by DPP Crown Counsel Maria Nembhard-Santana.  Justice Sylvester has deferred sentencing to Tuesday, April 14. On that date, the agreed facts of the case are expected to be read into the court record.  The court has also ordered the preparation of several reports ahead of sentencing, including a Social Inquiry Report, antecedents of the defendant, Victim Impact Statements, and a psychiatric evaluation.  Barrow was initially arraigned in 2025 in connection with the fatal shooting of twenty-one-year-old Floyd McFadzean, a messenger. At the time, he faced a total of seven criminal charges, including murder, two counts of attempted murder, two counts of grievous harm, and multiple counts of dangerous harm relating to other victims Jaheim Bent and Troy Gentle.  The deadly incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday, March 22, 2025, along Cemetery Road in Belize City.  Police reported that shortly after midnight, around 12:24 a.m., officers responded to reports of shots fired in the area. Upon arrival near the corner of Johnson Street and Cemetery Road, investigators discovered a white Ford Fusion crashed in a drain with multiple apparent gunshot damages.  Inside the vehicle, police found McFadzean seated behind the steering wheel suffering from gunshot injuries. He was pronounced dead at the scene.  Investigations revealed that McFadzean had been traveling from the direction of Central American Boulevard along with Dean Gladden and Troy Gentle when two unidentified persons on a motorcycle reportedly opened fire on the vehicle near First Choice Pharmacy. The barrage of shots caused McFadzean to lose control of the car, which then crashed into the drain near Constitution Park.  Two additional victims were taken to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. Gladden, a construction worker of West Street, sustained two gunshot graze wounds, while Gentle, a labourer of Lindo’s Alley, suffered three gunshot injuries.  Police later received information of a third shooting victim. Officers visited Basra Street, where they found Jaheim Bent with a gunshot wound to the upper center of his back. Investigators believe Bent exited the vehicle during the shooting and sought refuge elsewhere.  Barrow now awaits sentencing in April, when the court will determine his punishment for the manslaughter conviction.