After 21 Years in U.S. Prison, Belizean George Herbert is Returned Home

On Saturday, George Herbert, who was rounded up and sent to the U.S. to stand trial twenty-one years ago, was deported to Belize. Accused of being a former gang leader, Herbert was convicted by a U.S. federal court of several drug trafficking-related offences. Herbert was kidnapped by Belizean police officers and handed over to the U.S. Government to stand trial. He was accused of collaborating with Mexican and Colombian drug cartels and was convicted in December 2004 for importing several tonnes of cocaine into the U.S. between March 2001 and August 2002. Herbert was incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution Victorville in Adelanto, California. U.S. law enforcement presented evidence showing that Herbert shipped cocaine from offshore Belize to Calderitas, Mexico, on three occasions, knowing the drugs would be transported to the U.S. The evidence also revealed that Herbert collaborated with the Mexican Juarez Cartel, with the assistance of armed members of the “George Street Crew” street gang, to facilitate the drug smuggling operations. The cocaine was transported in speedboats supplied by Mauricio Ruda-Alvarez. Ironically, Ruda-Alvarez was found murdered in the trunk of a car in Medellín in October 2002, just two months after ordering the kidnapping of Herbert over a stolen cocaine shipment. While Herbert was serving time in a U.S. jail, a Belize court ruled in his favour regarding his extradition process. His family filed a lawsuit against the government, claiming a violation of Herbert’s constitutional rights due to a lack of due process. On the day he was handed over to U.S. law enforcement, Herbert was detained by Belize police officers. The court awarded fifty thousand dollars in damages to his beneficiaries and ten thousand dollars in court costs. Since returning to Belize, Herbert has been processed at the Queen Street Police Station by the G I-Three Unit and is required to sign in as part of the deportee monitoring programme.