7 year old Janay Moguel remains in the Intensive Care Unit at the Universal
Health Care Partners Hospital tonight. She is still unable to move most of her
body and the threat that she may never walk again remains very real and very
present. The terms “senseless violence” and “an innocent victim”
are often over-used in the news but Janay’s plight gives it graphic and
real meaning. She was walking on the sidewalk with her grandfather on Monday
at 6:30 when mindless criminals started firing at the busy intersection, literally,
like crazy men.
Four people were shot; two were treated and released; another, Dorrell
Wiliams Junior was shot in the eye and died yesterday after being taken off
life support, and the other is Janay – whose spine was injured when she
was shot in the shoulder. Tonight this vibrant child who was heading home to
eat dinner is now facing the very real prospect of not being able to walk again.
It is both a tragedy and a testament to the indiscriminate nature of street
violence. But her family has no time for reflection; they are managing a tragedy
in real time; coping with the horror of what happened, the urgency of her condition,
and the demands of mounting medical bills.
Somewhere in the middle of all this is her grandfather, Stephen Rhamdas.
He was with her when it happened, and he was also injured by gunfire. But right
now this 64 year old’s thoughts are fixed only on his grand-daughter and
the state of sustained terror his family has lived in for the last decade. Jacqueline
Godwin spoke with him today.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
It was a pleasure meeting and talking with sixty four year old year old Stephen
Rhamdas Sr. inside the residence he has called home for more than two decades.
But it was also heart wrenching to hear that for half of the time the Rhamdas
family has reside in the area, they’ve been living in fear, like prisoners
in their own home. Sadly, the family is just one of many innocent area residents 
whose lives have been lost and shattered by bullets meant for another in the
ongoing gun violence.
Stephen Rhamdas Senior’s first great tragedy was the senseless killing 11
of his ten year old son Stephen Rhamdas Junior. He was murdered in the early
nineties when a man who was the shooters’ intended target used the young
boy as a human shield. And now, his precious seven year old grand-daughter Janay
Moguel is in the Intensive Care Unit at Belize Healthcare Partners Limited.
The standard one student of Grace Primary School known for her friendly smiles
and outgoing nature may not be able to walk again. She is another innocent victim
of the bloody street violence. Stephen Rhamdas Senior was holding unto Janay
Moguel’s left hand as both walked across Central American Boulevard to
their home just across from the shop where they had gone to buy Creole bread.
The grandfather was struck first in his right hand, the same hand that held
onto to his granddaughter’s left hand. As the bullet struck Stephen in
his right thumb he instinctively dropped on top of Janay to protect her from
being shot.
Stephen Rhamdas, Grandfather/Shooting Victim
“When I dropped on top of her I heard more bullets flying over our body, our head, and so it was really terrible and after that when it eased down
then I tried to get up and pick her up but my hand was bleeding and my neighbour
came and rescue we.”
There were two other innocent victims Dorrel Williams Junior who was fatally
wounded and twenty seven year old Robert Howard who was shot as he rode by on
a bicycle.
Stephen Rhamdas,
“They said he got shot in his nose here and the bullet slide up and
went by his forehead, it grazed his forehead. Like it was a surprise to me because
that is not something I expected to happen, especially at that early hour, like
when darkness was just setting in. Everybody was out at the time so it was surprise
to me. I hear gunshots around this area more later in the night.”
Since Janay has been hospitalized her 
distraught parents Ruth and Marvin have
been by their daughter’s bedside. Her attending physician neuro and spine
surgeon Dr. Joel Cervantes explained that the bullet exited the upper part of
Janay’s left shoulder but damaged her left lung and thoracic spine. There
is also a severe swelling on her spinal cord On Wednesday Dr. Cervantes reported
that they could not detect any real movement of the left arm and both legs.
Today while there are no significant improvements Dr. Cerrvantes says his young
patient’s left lung is clearing up, there are no signs of infection and
if she continues to show slight improvement, by Saturday or Sunday the chest
tube can be removed. Hopefully Janay can be transferred from ICU and by next
week start receiving therapeutic therapy. But her condition is still critical
and, effectively, she’s still signs of paralysis.
And while Janay Moguel relies on the prayers and financial help she needs today,
7News understands that the police now have two persons in custody for Monday
evening’s shooting. What is disturbing is the fact that the entire bloody
incident unfolded under the lens of one of the police’s security cameras
but it is of no use to the neighbourhood at night since the equipment cannot
take pictures at that time. Not a comforting feeling for innocent residents
like the Rhamdas family who are now forced to remain indoors most of the time.
Jacqueline Godwin,
“I can imagine you don’t feel safe anymore.”
Stephen Rhamdas,
“No I don’t feel safe in the city. I tell my family I would
want to rent my house and go on the countryside and go and live because then 
too much things are happening in the city and I live here for years. I’ve
lived here from 1984. I built this property.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“Children are being innocently robbed of their childhood. You as a senior
citizen, you’re looking forward to living the rest of your life in peace
and now this is all the drama you have to be dealing with.”
Stephen Rhamdas,
“Right so I don’t know what to do next because I am real scared
because we don’t know what will happen next.”
Stephen Rhamdas’ palm by his right thumb was stitched and his left foot
remains swollen from the fall
Jacqueline Godwin,
“Do you have movement in the right thumb?”
Stephen Rhamdas,
“I have little, little movement but I can’t bring it like so
like how bring this left hand so, I can only bring it to there because if I
stretch it, it will more pain and then it has stitches in the right thumb because
like I told you the bullet slide through, it dug into the flesh, and bust through
so it really damaged the right thumb.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“And the tingling sensation you feel now and then, you think a nerve got
damaged there?”
Stephen Rhamdas,
“Yeah I believe a nerve inside there got damaged so maybe it will
take to heal but right now it is damaged because I cannot move it. If I hold
anything too hard I have to let it go because it pains me.”
But although he is in pain Stephen Rhamdas Sr. says the one who needs your
help is his seven year old granddaughter Janay Moguel and today eh appealed
for that assistance.
Stephen Rhamdas,
“To please her because she is in a srious condition and I would like
anybody who could help and give something to donate to her, I would beg the
public to please help her because she is really in need. She is only 7 years
old and she is struggling for her life right now and everybody is praying for
her and so hope the public prays for her too until she gets well again.”
You can help by calling Janay’s parents Marvin at cell phone number 604
-8121 or her mother Ruth at cell phone number 605-5641. Reporting for 7News
Jacqueline Godwin.
You Can Also Make Financial Donations at First Caribbean International
Bank in Account Number 1-0-1-0-3-3-1-5.
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