An 18-year-old Salem State University basketball player was shot and killed early on Wednesday in Salem, Massachusetts, only hours after the city’s Halloween celebrations came to an end. The man has been identified as Carl-Hens Beliard.
The incident happened just before 1:30 a.m. while Beliard was sitting in a car around 22 Forest Ave. and Lussier Street, close to the university. He was taken to Salem Hospital without delay, and upon arrival, his body was declared deceased.
Who was Carl-Hens Beliard?
Carl-Hens Beliard was 18 years old. He was a basketball player for Salem State University. Beliard was a resident of Worcester and was a freshman at University.
Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker acknowledged the great sadness that the senseless gun violence represented for the victim’s family, the SSU community, and other people. He expressed his profound grief over it. The Salem Police Department, Salem State University authorities, and detectives from the State Police under his command are working together to find and capture the person responsible for this heinous conduct.
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According to officials, preliminary investigational findings indicate that the shooting was not a random act of violence.
John Keenan, the president of Salem State University and a parent as well as an academic leader, expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy, describing it as a terrible incident that affected the entire town and every parent’s worst fear.
Alyssa Jackson, a resident of Salem, claimed that at first, she thought it was a car break-in as her car alarm had gone off. But as they looked more closely, they saw that one of the windows had a bullet hole in it.
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This tragedy happened just after the city saw thousands of people attend a Halloween festival. Because of the area’s proximity to the campus, noise from college-related activities is widespread, but shooting incidents are unusual, according to Jackson.
Detectives from the Salem Police Department are working with the Essex County District Attorney’s Office State Police Detective Unit to lead the investigation.
