A midday public shooting in Abaco has left high-profile suspected drug trafficker Warren “Spy” Ellis dead and a young child injured, sending shockwaves through the tight-knit island community and stoking widespread anxiety over potential follow-on violence.
The 51-year-old victim was gunned down by multiple assailants wielding high-powered firearms yesterday as he exited Parts City Auto Parts, a well-known local auto retailer. The young boy, caught in the barrage of bullets, was airlifted urgently to the main hospital hub in New Providence to receive specialized emergency care that was not available locally.
As of the publication of this report, Bahamian law enforcement has released only limited official details on the attack. Chief Superintendent Sheria King confirmed that a specialized investigative team from Grand Bahama has been deployed to Abaco to support local authorities in processing the scene and advancing the case. Unnamed police sources, speaking on condition of anonymity to The Tribune, indicate that investigators believe the gunmen are not residents of Abaco, and that the killing itself was likely an act of retaliation connected to prior criminal disputes.
Graphic videos of the aftermath circulating widely on social media show Ellis lying motionless on the pavement outside the retail store, with catastrophic visible injuries. Local media confirm his body remained at the crime scene for multiple hours before coroners removed it, a delay that drew hundreds of curious and concerned onlookers to the area. As word of the shooting spread across the island, the growing crowd revealed deep divides in public opinion: some residents openly mourned Ellis’ death, while others quietly expressed relief that a figure long linked to criminal activity had been killed.
Witnesses from nearby businesses described the terrifying moments of the attack, saying they heard dozens of shots ring out in quick succession before scrambling to take cover behind counters and walls. Multiple bystanders noted that Ellis’ cell phone continued to ring repeatedly as his body lay unattended at the scene, a small, haunting detail that has stuck with many in the community.
Roscoe Thompson, top administrator for the Marsh Harbour/Spring City Township, told reporters he counted at least 25 spent shell casings left scattered across the pavement after the attack. Thompson emphasized that the sheer boldness of carrying out a mass shooting in broad daylight, outside a busy commercial business where civilians and children regularly pass, has pushed community anxiety to new heights.
“It just shows you that if someone wants to get you, it doesn’t matter if you’re out in broad daylight or behind closed doors at night,” Thompson said. “If somebody is that brazen, they’re going to get you.”
Thompson added that the crime scene investigation clogged local roads, with police blocking off large sections of the main thoroughfare to preserve evidence, creating major traffic disruptions for hours after the shooting. “It’s just sad, and it’s concerning,” he said. “Is there going to be retaliation now? What’s going to happen next?” Local residents and government leaders are calling on law enforcement to maintain a heightened visible presence in Abaco to prevent further bloodshed.
Ellis had a long history of attracting law enforcement attention, even as formal convictions against him remained rare. In 2018, he and his wife were taken into custody at Lynden Pindling International Airport as they prepared to board a flight to Canada, after officers found $13,000 in cash stashed in their checked luggage. All criminal charges against the pair were ultimately dropped before they could go to trial. For years, Ellis’ name has appeared repeatedly in social media posts linking him to large-scale drug trafficking operations across the Bahamas, though none of those allegations were ever proven in a court of law.
According to The Tribune’s ongoing annual homicide tracking, yesterday’s attack marks the second murder recorded in Abaco so far this year, and the 52nd homicide across the entire Bahamas in 2024 to date. The killing comes amid ongoing national concerns about violent crime and gang-related retaliation across Bahamian island communities.