Police have charged forty-one-year-old Maynor Rene Ancona with the death of his wife, American national Jennifer Lynn Griffith. Ancona was charged with manslaughter by negligence. Police Commissioner Chester Williams confirmed to reporters today that Griffith died after being hit by a conch shell in the head. According to Williams, Ancona reportedly threw the conch shell by mistake during a brawl that took place in San Pedro Town over the weekend. While Ancona has not confessed to accidentally killing his wife, Williams says investigators have enough evidence to substantiate the charge.
Chester Williams
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police “The pathologist certified that the lady died from a penetration to the head by a projectile. I also think that fragments of the conch shell was also found in her head. And so we can see definitively now that it was a commercial that caused, caused her debt. The question now is who threw the commercial that caused her death. And, we have recorded a number of statements from persons who were involved in the fight as well as other independent witnesses. And from the investigation, it appeared that, we can confirm from the investigation that the person who threw the projectile that caused the death of the American woman is her husband. And so he will be charged today for manslaughter by negligence. He was throwing it indiscriminately and then it caught her and that led to her death. It’s a very sad situation. I know that he must be going through a very, very difficult time now. He lost his wife. And now he has to be charged for it. For sure, he did not intend to, but in law there is a thing that is called transfer of malice.”
Reporter “So, did he admit to that?”
Maynor Rene Ancona
Chester Williams “No, he did not.”
Britney Gordon “Has any security footage been reviewed?”
Earlier this week we showed you a viral video showing a man being physically assaulted by two men. The victim of the assault has been identified as Mark Avilez. The footage also shows that, during the assault, a toilet bowl was thrown at Avilez. The perpetrator, thirty-year-old Emmerson Garnett, pleaded guilty to two counts of common assault. And as we reported, Garnett was fined five hundred five dollars. Tonight, the mother of Mark Avilez, says she is not satisfied with the charge. She is now pressing the police department to file charges against Avilez’s girlfriend and the man who held down Avilez. The mother explained that the incident originated from an argument between her son and her sister. She says that her sister is the partner of Emmerson Garnett. We spoke with her off-camera today.
Voice of: Mother of Mark Avilez
Voice of: Mother of Mark Avilez
“I nuh the get no justice from the police. I gone dah the police station this morning and they told me the young lady wanted but I didn’t see no wanted picture up there. I nuh really like how the young man get charge for assault. I would want him to get charged for attempted murder because he had a sewerage, and he dropped the sewerage and hit my son with that. When I see that video and I put that on, I hurry cut it off and cry. And it hurts me for my own family to do something like this for me.”
Paul Lopez
“Mark was clearly in fear from the moment he saw him.”
Voice of: Mother of Mark Avilez
“When Mark saw him step in the house Mark get frightened because it was two of them and he never know what they up to. But I want them pick up the girlfriend because she set this up.”
Paul Lopez
“Why would you say the girlfriend set it up?”
Voice of: Mother of Mark Avilez
“Because she text him and told him to please bring food for ah. And, my son say something when they step in, dah this you mek I come to. I really want something done about this. I really want talk to the commissioner , I want to speak to him because the officers are not doing their job right and I will not stop push until I get justice.”
Tourism Minister Anthony Mahler is supporting the reinstatement of his cabinet colleague, Andre Perez. Minister Mahler, like the other Cabinet ministers we have interviewed to date on the reinstatement, pointed to the fact that no formal complaint has been made against Perez. Perez was accused of sexual misconduct by attorney Wendy Auxillou, who says she does not need to make an official police report.
Anthony Mahler
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism
“Minister Perez and I share a very close relationship in Cabinet and outside. I go to San Pedro, and we strategize. We have some major projects on the way for improving the project in San Pedro and we will begin to launch those projects. But there has been no formal report or anything like that. And I support the decision by the prime minister to bring back Minister Perez to the Cabinet.”
Last night, we told you that the Belize City Council is still without a city administrator. The post became vacant following the unfortunate and untimely passing of former city administrator Stephanie Lindo-Garbutt. Reports indicate that at least three applications have been submitted. According to reports, among the applicants are former city councillor Albert Vaughn and the Party’s Secretary General Linsford Castillo. The move to fill one of the most powerful seats in the city appears to be causing some tension. A group of six recently elected councillors wrote and signed a letter to Mayor Bernard Wagner saying that they wanted to be a part of the decision-making process. In their letter, the councillors noted that a suitable, qualified person must be appointed to the post of city administrator. Mayor Wagner responded in writing, denying the request. Further reports indicate that there is a rift at the central government level between Ministers Francis Fonseca and Anthony Mahler over which candidate is best qualified for the position. Today, we asked Minister Mahler about it. Here is what he told us.
Anthony Mahler
Anthony Mahler, Area Representative, Pickstock
“I would just hope that the city council selects the most qualified person. That is the most important management position in the council. That position drives everything for the council. That person should have the highest level of integrity. Capacity is very important, and I will stress, capacity is very important. So, we will see where it goes from there.”
Paul Lopez
“Do you have someone you favor for this position?”
Anthony Mahler
“No, I just want them to make the right decision.”
Paul Lopez
“Has the city administrator decision created any sort of rift between you and Minister Fonseca?”
Anthony Mahler
“No, actually I was a pleasant presentation yesterday in Belmopan. If you could go on his Facebook, you could see it. We had lunch together. WE had some good discussions with ambassadors from across the world and they play an important role in getting Belize out there as well. So it is a continued partnership and that is that.”
The Canadian government is warning its nationals to exercise a high degree of caution when travelling to Belize. The advisory notes that there are high levels of crime throughout the country and that travellers should avoid non-essential travel to southside Belize City. This is due to gang and drug-related violence, including murders and shootings. The advisory highlights the recently declared state of emergency in Belize City and the Cayo district. Today, we asked Tourism Minister Anthony Mahler about the advisory and his message to Canadian travellers.
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism
“We take it seriously and we are in constant dialogue with our PR agency in Canada. WE had a discussion in Cabinet about the state of emergency, what it means, and how we can minimize the negative impacts it has on our industry. And so, we are talking about it. I think the state of emergency is a last resort by the government and so when we had to utilize that It was to contain the violence that happens here in Belize city and other parts of the country, but it is important for us to be able to properly articulate what we are doing, to our partners internationally, because they are not here. They don’t understand that it is only in a small piece of real estate that the violence is happening, not in any of major tourism destinations. So, we have to do a better job in terms of advising them.”
Paul Lopez
“So, with that, what do you say to Canadian travelers?”
Tourism stakeholders gathered in Belize City today for B.T.B.’s BOOM Forum. The event featured a wide range of speakers, including local and international experts on tourism. It is organized to update stakeholders on the marketing strategies the Belize Tourism Board is employing to attract visitors. The forum is also used to disseminate information on emerging tourism products. Stakeholders often leave with a greater understanding of why people are travelling and what they are looking for. News Five’s Paul Lopez reports.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
The worlds of emerging technology and emerging tourist destinations are colliding through virtual reality headsets. Meridian Treehouse is behind this technological tool being used in the United States to promote Belize to potential visitors through virtual immersion.
Wesley Della Volla
Wesley Della Volla, Meridian Treehouse
“Today we had the prime example of it, we have someone who came in and she went diving with us and our VR and said, I have never been diving before, and now I want to. That’s the great thing about virtual reality, your brain thinks that it is a memory. So your brain thinks and processes VR differently than you would just sit and watch a video. So, your brains remember it as a memory and thinks it is something you have done. You say, ok this is something I have done before, and I can do it again. So, it great for tourism, a way to get people to come see a country, like Belize. Perfect example was right there, great I have seen the coral reef, a little bit of it, I want to go see more of it.”
Attendees of the Belize Tourism Board’s BOOM Forum received a firsthand experience of what potential Belize City for tourism stakeholders from across the country. The Minister of Tourism, Anthony Mahler, told us more.
Anthony Mahler
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism
“This is what we call BOOM, building on our momentum and it is just to keep the private sector and Belize informed of what we are doing, in terms of marketing and in some instances product development.January was a very strong month, February was a breaking month and for the first time in history we did over sixty thousand in March, close to seventy thousand. And those are very strong numbers compared to the bench mark which is 2019. That is about almost eighteen percent over that.Our main strategy was to build a strong airlift into the country. We have worked tirelessly with the private sector to ensure we make noise all across the world and to ensure we focus on our key source market specifically and we have worked in partnership with the private sector to have these numbers.”
According to statistics, approximately eighty-six percent of the U.S. population says they intend to travel this year. Fifty-nine percent of the population, or more than one hundred and fifty million Americans, will travel abroad. The Belize Tourism Board is partnering with The Zimmerman Agency to attract some of those travellers to Belize.
Cole Zimmerman
Cole Zimmerman, Senior Vice President, The Zimmerman Agency
“We are a three sixty agency, we do anything from the website to marketing efforts, to research, to PR to social media, to media buying. We are a one stop shop for Belize and it really helps because we don’t have to talk to other agencies about what we are doing. We collaborate together with the BTB and Belize in general. Our effort is to get people from the United States to Belize by any means necessary. But, we have a very strategic approach utilizing research and data to help us narrow down our audience, all the way down the down to the zip code.Some top things the U.S market really likes about Belize is the fact that it is the only market in the Central America that speaks English as a main language, as well as the U.S dollar. So just some key points, outside the people and the beautiful destination that make it simple to get here.”
And, as Belize’s tourism products continue to improve and attract visitors from across the world, Minister Mahler says it is not lost on him that there is a lot more work to do as an emerging destination.
Anthony Mahler
“We are still an emerging destination, so improvements to the airport is important, improvement to the infrastructure is important. We need more electricity on San Pedro. WE need more water on Placencia Peninsula and we need more amenities at the attractions and those are the things we ar3e working on as well. But, we have high end products, middle income products and products for people at the lower end of the spectrum and so we have something for everyone.”
Police confirmed today that fifty-nine-year-old Linbert Flowers was murdered. He was stabbed to death by another man on Monday morning in Belize City. At the time, police were not sure how Flowers died. But, subsequent investigations revealed that he had been stabbed several times over an affair he was having with a woman.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police “We have sent the statements and what we have to the DPP. The DPPs are waiting the postmortem examination. We have confirmed that he was stabbed by someone inside the house. Another man inside the house. And so based on the evidence that we have at this time, the person, the other man, as well as the lady, were released from custody pending the postmortem, at which time the DPP will be able to give us a statement a definitive answer if we’re going to charge and if yes, what the charge is going to be.”
Accused murdered Elmer Nah continues to proclaim his innocence. He stands accused of murdering brothers Jon and David Ramnarace and Jon’s wife, Vivien Ramnarace. Last week, during the trial of the Bladen twelve, Nah slipped News Five a handwritten in which he said he was innocent and that an enhanced version of the security video which captured the murder could prove it. On Wednesday, Nah sent this newsroom another handwritten letter. In this latest letter, Nah highlights different time codes, pointing out certain aspects of the shooter. Today, we asked Police Commissioner Chester Williams about it.
Chester Williams
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
“There are a number of evidence that circumstantial evidence that points towards Nah being the one responsible for that particular case, but certainly with what he had what he had provided, we will explore that possibility, but matter of fact, we are doing so at this time. So to answer your question, it is being looked at, but I don’t want it to come across as if we are exploring other possibilities because we’re not sure as to the nature of the case that we currently have against him.”
Reporter
So that video looks like. pretty grainy. Is there the potential to actually enhance that?
Chester Williams
“We have solicited the assistance of the U. S. Embassy and we had sent that video footage abroad and to some extent it was enhanced. Not as good as we wanted to, but the experts in the U. S. um, did do what they could do with it for us. The Matter of the escort, I believe I have addressed that before. We have looked at the surveillance footages from the van that normally does the escort as well as the barricade footages from the police officers who conduct this escort. And there is nothing, absolutely not one iota of evidence to support the claim that Nah is making. is not. You have to understand Nah is very crafty and now has an attorney who is who is ten times more crafty than he is. So, I don’t know what else to say. I don’t know what we have said to you that we have done the investigation and there is nothing to show that as you are claiming that there is reckless driving. No. There is none. There is none. The camera for the van is there. There’s no evidence to show that he has been threatened by anybody who escorted him.”
Minister of Sustainable Development, Orlando Habet is resting at home after he was involved in a traffic accident that could have potentially left him with serious injuries. Habet was reportedly heading from Santa Elena enroute to his office in Belmopan when his SUV and a truck collided into each other, and Habet’s vehicle ended up on its roof on top of the guard rail on the side of the highway. Luckily, the minister did not suffer any major injuries, but he was taken to the San Ignacio Town Hospital for observations before he was released. Habet has reportedly expressed gratitude to everyone who has sent well wishes to him and his family.
A large amount of cash was stolen from Westrac in Orange Walk. The crime was discovered this morning by an employee who realized that there was a break-in. The employee observed that the building had been ransacked and that a window was broken. He found that over seventy-one thousand dollars was missing from a safe and up to fifteen thousand was taken from the cashier’s drawers. It is believed that the burglars entered the compound by cutting a hole in the fence.
