The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

THE mother of four-year-old Kenton Seymour Jr, who was shot and killed on Tuesday, was inconsolable as she struggled to bear the loss of her only son.

A distraught Normareaka Smith, told The Tribune yesterday that her and the son’s father had intended to go on a family drive, but everything took an unforgettable turn when gunmen began to fire.

Ms Smith and other relatives were yesterday very emotional over Kenton’s death.

“When we hopped in the car, we said we would go for a little ride because we normally go for a ride, we get ice cream, anything the kids like. Even if we have to go walk on the edge of the beach or something, we do stuff like that because my baby (Kenton) likes to go,” she said of her son who she adoringly calls “Papi”.

She explained that Kenton was not the only child in the car and that he was sitting in her lap when the mayhem erupted. She had told him earlier to sit in the back seat with the other children, but Kenton insisted that he sit in his mother’s lap.

“It only took us one minute to go down there, when we drive down there by Fleming Street and West Street we heard three shots,” the mother said as she wept. “We didn’t know where the shots were coming from. Next thing you know, a shot bust through the window; we duck down when we duck down, I got back up. When I looked my baby (Kenton) was still ducking, so I just thinking he ducking.”

Ms Smith said at first she did not know her child was shot, she thought he was still hiding down away from the shooting. It was not until she checked him that she realised he had been hit and was bleeding.

“He wasn’t talking, all I could do was scream,” Ms Smith cried out as she recalled the events of Tuesday.

His killing was one of the two murders that took place that day.

According to police reports, the child was with his parents in the West Street and Fleming Street area when they observed two males, both of whom were armed with handguns, firing gunshots at another male while running past their vehicle.

The child was shot and was taken to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

The heartbroken mother explained she had a close bond with her son. She made an effort to spend quality time with him and to make sure he knew he was loved.

“I don’t party because I was scared for people to keep him, to avoid something like this from happening. Not knowing that someone would come and shoot him right in my lap.”

She described him as a “very energetic little boy” who, similar to herself, enjoyed his own company. He loved going out to places and having fun.

“If he doesn’t want go to the beach, he want go to the park, or IMAX. He just wanted to go someplace. Or even he if wanted to go for a ride, he say mummy let’s go for ice-cream.”

She recalled one of the memories she shared with her son.

“Monday evening when I came from work, I took him on the beach. I didn’t even go home and change my clothes because he loves going places and he was like, mummy, I want to go on the beach.

“Before we walked in the back of the house to go on the beach. He picked a bunch of flowers and he had put them in my cake bag. He said mummy these flowers are for you. So, I said okay, then he was picking more, and I said baby that’s enough.

“He was just playing, and we had a little floaty. I was going to record him, but I say man my phone too far, I don’t need to record him,” the mother sighed.

Kenton was a student at St Barnabas and was in K-3. She explained the father of the late child had just gone to the school to pay for his school uniform.

Ms Smith cried: “I used to pray, Lord, so much going on in this country, I say Lord please guide and protect my baby. I said let him live to be old and successful. I said let him bury me and not me bury him.”

She is now heartbroken that the very thing she did not want to do has come to pass.