Bahamas: 23-year-old mother shot dead just four days after giving birth

Bahamas: A 23-year-old Philieara Sands was shot dead while her four-day-old baby narrowly escaped death in shooting incident on Sunday afternoon in front of Finlayson Street around 3 pm.  

The victim was rushed to a hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries while undergoing treatment just hours after being shot in the head. 

The mother of three travelled from Abaco to New Providence in the Bahamas to give birth to her newborn, claimed the grieving uncle of the victim. She was set to return to the family islands a few days later.  

It is reported that Sands was sitting in a car when assailants traveling in a silver-coloured Jeep opened fire on a group of people, hitting two men who were believed to be the actual targets. However, the single mother sustained bullet injury in the head when the targeted men were using the crowd for cover. During the shooting, the four-day-old baby was reported to be in the backseat of the car on the baby chair, but he escaped unhurt.   

The victim was rushed to the nearby private hospital by her uncle who was inside the residence where car was parked when the shooting occurred. The mother of three succumbed to her injuries soon after arriving at the hospital.  

Police said that following the shooting, the suspects drove south along Finlayson Street in the Bahamas and are still on the run. 

The uncle of the victim, Dodridge Conley, said that he was inside of his family’s residence at Meadow Street on Sunday afternoon when he heard the sounds of gunshots being fired outside. He then went outside to make the checks only to find his 23-year-old niece in a pool of blood inside the car.  

Conley who was visiting from Eleuthera said that he does not believe his niece was the intended target. He remembered Sands as a friendly and outgoing person whose tragic death has left a void in their family. The uncle also condemned what he describes as a senseless crime which left three children without their mother.  

The police further said that authorities will be able to use the footage from the CCTV cameras located on the street to help nab the ones responsible for the shooting. 

This incident marks the 5th homicide of the country with police officials urging the citizens to report any types of suspicious activities taking place around them to the police.