Why wasn’t Andre Perez Investigated After Drug Find in San Pedro?

It has been a week since police in San Pedro discovered a quantity of suspected cocaine on a boat owned by Area Representative Andre Perez. In the immediate aftermath, the Belize Police Department issued a statement essentially exonerating the Minister of Blue Economy from any criminal wrongdoing. The statement clarified that Perez’s vessel was at a boatyard awaiting repairs and that, acting on information from residents, police conducted a search of the boat. However, public criticism has been mounting, with many arguing that Perez was never subjected to a thorough criminal investigation, despite his ownership of the vessel used to stash the narcotics. Here’s how the Commissioner of Police responded.

 

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“The department is not one that would act based on what certain sector of the public may want to see us act on.  We act based on evidence and we must be objective in terms of how we carry out our functions.  If you have a vehicle and your vehicle experiences mechanical problems and you take your vehicle to a mechanic garage, you park it there for six months, you don’t go to that mechanic garage and check on your vehicle, your vehicle is left open and the mechanic has access to it, the garage is an open area and people have access to the garage.  If police were to go and find drugs in your vehicle after six months, would it be fair to say that the drugs belong to you?”

 

Isani Cayetano

“The counterargument, as far as I am understanding, however, is that, for instance, if the police conduct a raid or a search at a residence and they find illegal items in there, then automatically it’s ascribed as your property.

 

Chester Williams

“But again, you hear what you said, at a residence.  The boat was not at Mr. Perez’s residence.  Mr. Perez lives miles away from the boatyard.  The man does not live there.  If there was anybody to be held to account for that drugs in the boat, it would have been the owner of the boatyard.  But even they could not be held to account because the boatyard has so many ins and outs.  People go in, and as I said before, the police went there based on intelligence that was given to them by people who live in the area having seen these drug men going to the area.  Do you expect me to charge the minister for something that there is no nexus between him and that object?  I can’t do that mein.”