Police Department Gives Very Different Account of Benque Incident

Fitzroy Yearwood

Today, the Director of Communications in the Belize Police Department gave a very different version from those of the witnesses in the area.  When asked about shots fired on the scene, Fitzroy Yearwood said, “we have confirmed that the officer may have fired a warning shot in the air.”  He also claims officers responded rapidly to the young man in distress in the river.

ASP Fitzroy Yearwood, Communications Director, Belize Police Department

“A life has been lost so we have to investigate. We know that police is always vigilant in that area because that is the area contrabandistas. A lot of people also use that area to go swimming. It is somewhere around Belize Water Service’s plant and police were in that area sometime around eleven fifteen yesterday when the attention was drawn to four young men swimming in that area. These men were coming out of the river and when they saw the police officers they ran back in the river. Why they ran back, only they can tell. They noticed that one person dressed in white shirt and blue boxers underwear slipped off the rocks and may have hit some part of the body. When the police realized that he was struggling as if he couldn’t swim they jumped in to the river along with other civilians and they made lot of attempts to try to find this person because he disappeared underwater. All these attempts were fruitless until this person showed up on the other side of the river where he was removed. They carefully examined his body where they saw scratch above his left eye that would be consistent with the fall. Officers have been questioned because it was a complete patrol, a team, police and B.D.F. personnel. We are waiting for the results of a post-mortem that should be conducted either today or later this week. It is unfortunate that a lot of people have become accustomed to videoing an event instead of rendering assistance but we cannot blame them for wanting to be aspiring news reporters and videographers. But at the end of day protection of life and property is important to us at the police department and if you notice the police wasted no time to spring into action to try to save this person’s life.”