BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - AMONG the new cases to be heard at the January 2013 Criminal Assizes is that of Nyon Dasent, who was charged with attempted murder and the shooting with intent of Shakeem ‘Hotness’ Walters.
At the opening of the Assizes on Tuesday, January 15, Dasent pleaded not guilty to both offences that he allegedly committed on January 19, 2012.
Previous reports stated that just 48 hours following the incident, the 21-year-old was formally arrested and subsequently charged on the following day (Jan. 22).
Shortly after midnight on Friday (Jan. 20), Dasent allegedly shot Walters in Park Street, Basseterre in the vicinity of National Housing Corporation (NHC).
According to reports, the 16-year-old was found lying on Park Street in a pool of blood with gunshot wounds to the head and chest.
When SKNVibes visited the crime scene on the morning of the incident, one of the officers said that “no stone will be left unturned in this shooting incident”.
This publication learnt that one of the two bullets had damaged Walters’ spine and he is currently paralysed from the waist down and is also blind.
Walters’ shooting had left many to speculate on whether it was a hate crime, as the young man was known for his ‘flamboyant’ dress code and hairstyles and was openly gay.
On May 2, 2012, Walters celebrated his 17th birthday from his hospital bed and told SKNVibes that the situation makes him cry each time he thinks about what caused him to be in that physical and mental state.
He also strongly believed that he was shot because of the lifestyle he chose, but quickly noted that dressing that way was being himself.
“I don’t think I deserved what happened to me, but now I know God wants me closer to him,” he added.
