Robberies in Belize City and Toledo
Robberies seem to be on the rise and not just in Belize City as images captured on surveillance video and posted on social media show. Just recently, several persons were charged for the robberies at Belize Healthcare Partners and the Biltmore hotel, and tonight, we report on three other property crimes that occurred by masked men in the city and southern Belize. News Five’s Duane Moody reports.
Duane Moody, Reporting
Last Thursday, three armed men held up the owners of a grocery store in Elridgeville in Punta Gorda. Surveillance footage of the incident shows the men entering the store and taking money from the cash register, but not before pushing the female shop owner to the ground while the Chinese businessman is held at gunpoint. The one minute forty-two-second video captures the chilling ordeal.
Fitzroy Yearwood
ASP Fitzroy Yearwood, Communications Director, Belize Police Department
“Another amateur video sent to us; no formal report. I myself saw the video, made some inquiries and haven’t received a formal complaint so far.”
In Belize City, two incidents also occurred – one which has been reported to police and is currently being investigated. Sixth Street in the Kings Park area is a highly trafficked area, but over the weekend, three masked men entered and robbed My Lights Store. They escaped with an undisclosed amount of money.
ASP Fitzroy Yearwood
“The owner of the business and his worker were at this establishment when three masked men walked in, relieved them of their cell phone. The worker was also relieved of a gold chain valued at a hundred and fifty dollars and they took an undisclosed amount of cash from the cash register. We are still investigating this matter.”
In the other incident just outside of Monica’s Pawn Shop at the corner of Elston Kerr Street and the George Price Highway, a robbery was foiled when a former cop intercepted two men who produced a weapon and were about to rob either the store or the tacos lady in the area.
ASP Fitzroy Yearwood
“That was not foiled by police officers; that’s an ex-officer and we have not received an official report for that and it is an attempt robbery. So we will have to gather the information. I saw another video and when these things occur, people find it fitting to send to me then I try to investigate. On the video, clearly you could see that – whether it was an imitation or a real firearm, there was an object that was picked up.”
Communication Director Fitzroy Yearwood of the Belize Police Department says that these criminals have been taking advantage of the mask regulation to commit these property crimes. But fishermen masks, according to ASP Yearwood, are not permitted and you will be ticketed.
ASP Fitzroy Yearwood
“Everybody is wearing a mask these days. We are asking that these persons wearing the fishermen type of masks, we are reminding them that this is not the legally prescribed mask for COVID-19. And when officers meet you wearing that kind of ace covering, because it is not medically approved, you’re also committing an offence. Because we are realising that all these robberies that are being committed, they are using the same kind of face covering. These are the masks that they would put over their head; it fits somewhere around your neck where you can just pull down the bottom and then pull up the top. Early in the pandemic, we had to ask police officers also not to use those unless they are police issued. We do have units that are police issued where it clearly marked police that are used on operations and not for regular patrols within the city.”
Duane Moody for News Five.
