Slain teen was targeted, police say

Victim, 15, had told aunt he was afraid to return to school

- CALVI LEON

Mario Giddings was killed the day before he was to begin Grade 11.

Mario Giddings had been anxious about returning to high school on Tuesday.

He told his aunt recently that he feared for his life following an altercation with other students before the summer break.

On Monday evening, just before he was to begin Grade 11 at Weston Collegiate Institute, the 15-yearold was shot dead outside a pizza shop in the Black Creek area in what police are calling a targeted attack.

It’s unclear if there is any connection between the fight and Mario’s death. But as investigators try to determine a motive and identify suspects, his grieving family is searching for an explanation for the tragedy.

Speaking from her penthouse apartment overlooking the plaza where her nephew had been shot less than 24 hours earlier, Fortunata Giddings told the Star that she was trying to transfer him to a new school this week.

He had been suspended during the last semester of Grade 10.

“He got into a fight before school closed,” said Giddings, who had been raising Mario for several years while his parents reside in St. Lucia.

On Tuesday, Giddings was sitting on the sofa, her hand resting on her forehead, while the news of his death played on the television.

“I want justice for him.”