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Teenager Accused of Killing A Man Over A Bike In Corozal
posted (August 5, 2015)

A 15 year old boy allegedly stabbed and killed a 23 year old man in Corozal last night. At around 9, Samir Vivas was in front of a friend's house when he got into a fight with the teenager. The boy claims that Vivas stole his bicycle but Vivas denied it. Still, things got out of hand and the 15 year old stabbed Vivas once in the stomach. Today we traveled to Corozal to find out what happened – we got two totally different versions of the story. Courtney Weatherburne has the report.

Supt. Dennis Arnold - OC, Corozal Police

"Police initial investigation reveal that Vivas was at home, Venezuelan site area, Corozal Town where a minor had approached him and accused him of stealing his bicycle."

It is that accusation that led to the murder of 23 year old Samir Vivas.

Today Vivas' mother – broken by her son's senseless death - held on tightly to her neighbour right in front of the spot where her son was stabbed. It happened in front of this house - a couple feet away from Vivas' home. Vivas got into a fight with a 15 year old boy over a missing bicycle. During the scuffle on this patchy lawn, Vivas was stabbed in his stomach.

That's when Vivas stumbled home where his grandmother was waiting for him. He couldn't make it inside to see his grandmother – instead he collapsed right here in the yard outside where his relatives found him – dead.

There are varying stories surrounding this incident. For one: the mother of the 15 year old boy says it wasn't her son but another man that Vivas got into a fight with before the confrontation with her boy.

Mother of 15 year old boy

"I understand that my son gone to the house because he still had his girlfriend there. He gone take a key and the girl never was there. So mean while he the wait on the girl, the person - I forget the person name, the young man Samir come in. So he tell my son like this, he said, "You b****, I hear you accuse me that I thief your bike. So my son smile because it's a bicycle. So they got they argument and my son say he walk away and when he the way away the boy Samir approached him by his shirt collar. And he say, when he approached him so, he said he heist up for he bike front of him and said from there they start to fight. They never take long, they fight lee bit and from there so, he said the boy dropped. He said when the boy dropped, he said he hear like the boy grumble. He said he pick up for he bike and he gone. I said no it can't be my son, my son is not like that. My son young and he never get himself into trouble yet. He is not that type of people and he no back no kind of weapon with him."

But according to an eyewitness who was inside the house at that time - the 15 year old boy was armed.

Eyewitness - Stabbing

"Samir came to him, run after him, right here they stopped and I actually came out and saw. And I saw that Samir ask him why is he saying he took his bike and he didn't took it. He told him yes you took it and Samir wanted to beat him with the bottle. They were forcing with the bottle, Samir belt the bottle and it went backwards and the bottle is there. The boy just took out an orange thing, saw him shove it and took it out and he went with his bike frightened."

Residents say that the police took so long to arrive that even the ambulance got there before they did:

Annabelle Vivas - Mother

"When I reach right there they opened the ambulance and the other doctor from the hospital ran in and when they ran in and checked him, they called me inside and I told him come in, come in. I told him bring in my son shocked, he said no ma'am listen sit down, Ms. Vivas sit down, he said your son is dead. I said no, no, no, he is not dead."

In disbelief, family and friends huddled on the street side in front of the house. Back at Vivas' solitary home – his purple school bag packed with clothes and supplies for a job he was supposed to go on today – was leaning against the back of an old dusty car. And the rag his head was placed on in his final moments lay tattered in the dust.

The 15 year old boy turned himself in this morning. Police told us that Samir Vivas is no stranger to police and that he has been charged with robbery before.

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