Crime - Channel 5 Belize

Calaney Flowers Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter

Calaney Flowers, the woman who was initially charged with the murder of twenty-nine-year-old Lyndon Morrison, pleaded guilty to manslaughter today. Flowers was also charged with the attempted murder of Morrison’s girlfriend, Sochyl Sosa.

The incident happened in August 2012. Flowers ran over Morrison on Freetown Road in Belize City. After spending years in pretrial detention at the Belize Central Prison, Flowers was acquitted of the charges. However, the Director of Public Prosecutions successfully appealed the acquittal, leading to a retrial today.

In a dramatic turn of events, Flowers, now thirty-seven and an entrepreneur, took a plea bargain, pleading guilty to manslaughter. She was sentenced to 10 years but was released from jail after Justice Sylvester credited her with five years for time already served and suspended the remaining five years. Justice Sylvester considered both aggravating and mitigating factors in the case and concluded that Flowers, after 12 years in the criminal justice system, was unlikely to reoffend.

67-Year-Old Bludgeoned to Death Inside Roaring Creek Cemetery

A sixty-seven-year-old man was bludgeoned to death inside the Roaring Creek cemetery. Just after six a.m. today, police discovered the lifeless body of Benito Cal next to a tomb with his bicycle flung across him. He had severe injuries to the face. An initial investigation reveals that whoever killed Cal, struck him in the face several times with a concrete block. Cal had relatives living in an area behind the cemetery. He frequently traveled through the graveyard to visit them. We spoke with one relative off camera who told us that she last saw Cal around three p.m. on Wednesday. She described him as a hardworking and kind individual who troubled no one.

Voice of: Relative of Deceased

“Grandpa, he is a cool man. That is all I can say. He been around we. I call him gramps. Everyday he around us. Everyday I see him. He go see my kids around school and give them a little snack. And then he wait for us after school by the Chinese and he still buy snacks for us and anywhere he go he see people and just give them helping hand, give them dollar, whatever he got he give them. He buy food. That man is a good man. He is a cool, cool grandpa. He is well known in the community. He is a family man I won’t say nothing bad because he is around me too long and he is a family man. I don’t know what happened or who could ever do that to an old man, a sixty-seven-year-old man. What can I say, I don’t know. Actually they called me and they told me this morning that grandpa is dead you know and I went immediately to see and I found him there lying on the ground. I went to see him, I witnessed him. So, that is where I found out that is my grandpa.”

Paul Lopez

“As far as you know, he is not a trouble maker.”

Voice of: Relative of Deceased

“No he is not a trouble maker. He is a very cool old man. Everybody knows that and everybody knows that right now everybody say that is a good man. Why they do that to him.”

Reporter

“He was found in the Cemetry, was that a path he took?”

Voice of: Relative of Deceased

“Sometimes, many times he tool the long road but I don’t know what caused him to go that way that day. I don’t know what happened.”

Man Found Guilty for 7 Stolen Guns

Today, a man was found guilty of eight counts of firearm offenses and burglary for a weapons heist that took place in February 2019. Randy Chambers, along with an accomplice later identified as Selvin Linarez, was charged with burglarizing Victor L. Bryant on Lake Independence Boulevard. Together, they made off with several firearms and were subsequently charged with firearm offenses. But today, Linarez pleaded guilty and on Friday, the sitting Senior Magistrate will sentence both men. Back in 2019 Linarez was charged with five counts of keeping a firearm without a gun license for which he was found guilty today. Linarez had pleaded guilty to the burglary charge only. Chambers maintains his innocence but was found guilty today after months of trial. Both men were unrepresented.

Son Steals Jewelry for Mother, Both Charged

Today, a mother, son and a family friend were handed separate charges for an incident involving thousands of dollars in stolen jewelry. It is reported that on June seventh, eighteen-year-old Christian Denver Ramos robbed nineteen-year-old Eric Vernon at gunpoint in the Kings Park area of Belize City, making off with a variety of items including jewelry, an iPhone, and cash, summing up to two thousand, nine hundred and eighteen dollars in value. Ramos pleaded not guilty to robbery, however, his mother, Genevieve Coleman, and nineteen-year-old Elsworth Talbert pleaded guilty to handling stolen goods. Coleman told the court that she took the items to the pawn shop but didn’t know that they were stolen until afterwards. Coleman claims that she got the items from her son, Ramos, who reportedly told her that he found the items. When asked why she didn’t take the items to the police station since her son claimed he found them, she said quote, At the time I had no money and I needed to buy things for the kids because they were hungry, end quote. For their guilty pleas, Coleman and Talbert were imposed non-custodial sentences of fines of one thousand dollars each, plus a five-dollar cost of court which they both must pay. Coleman must pay her fines by December fifteenth, 2024, while Talbert must pay his fines by September fifteenth, 2024 in default both will spend one year imprisonment.

Police Commissioner says Bullies in Police Custody

A video going viral on social media shows a boy being bullied by a group of boys. The incident took place in Santa Cruz Village, Toledo. The video has angered the public, with many calling for the boys to be criminally charged.

Police Commissioner released the following statement regarding the incident:

“In relation to the video depicting a group of young boys bullying another young boy, please note that the police is addressing this situation. An official report had been lodge with the police and the boys doing the bullying are in custody. It’s very disheartening to see how these young boys could have opted to bully such a quiet and humble person. It is more disheartening to have see how the others instigated this bullish act to occur.

While the police is addressing this matter, it is important for parents to pay more attention to what their children are doing. This is how gang group starts. The police will be working with the parents, students and schools to address this issue, to ensure the young man do not become a criminal gang, to see what can be done to allow then to continue their education while, at the same time be punished for what they did, that there is an amicable resolution to this issue that will take into account the best interest of all parties and to ensure there is no reoccurrence of such action towards no other child.

While we focus on protecting our children from adults who may wish to harm or use them to carry out criminal activities, we must also protect them from being hurt or bullied by their peers.

Every child must know that bullying is a crime and shall be treated as such. Together let’s unite to end bullying in our schools, homes and streets.”

Police Investigate Murder of Elderly Man in Western Belize

Authorities are investigating the murder of Benito Cal, a 67-year-old man, in Roaring Creek Village, Cayo. According to police, the investigation commenced after officers responded to a report at the Roaring Creek Cemetery earlier today. Upon arrival, officers found the motionless body of Cal, bearing injuries to his face.

Cal was last seen around 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 12, and was discovered lifeless at approximately 6:30 a.m. the following day.

The body was subsequently transported to the Western Regional Hospital, where Cal was pronounced dead. The investigation is ongoing.

Dangriga PC Under Investigation for Firing Shot at Officer’s Feet

Police in Dangriga are investigating one of their own. Police Constable Harry Bo is accused of firing a single shot near another officer’s feet. It happened on Wednesday night while PC Bo and other officers were in front of Wa-gusina Fast Food. While waiting for their food, PC Christian Koyoc praised PC Jerel Hendy for his performance.

PC Bo quickly interjected, saying, “I am the sickest. You no work with me yet. You need to work with me one of these days.” Wanting to prove that he is the “sickest”, PC Bo reportedly pulled out his service weapon and fired a single shot near PC Hendy’s feet.

PC Hendy reported the matter to higher-ups.

It is unclear if alcohol was involved. We are told that PC Bo refused to provide a urine sample.

A request for comment has been sent to the Belize Police Department.

Tehje Vaughan Fined $15,000 For Manslaughter by Negligence

Twenty-five-year-old Tehje Vaughan was fined fifteen thousand dollars after pleading guilty to manslaughter by negligence in the shooting death of her friend and co-worker, thirty-year-old Charles Cantun. The incident occurred on April 28, 2023, outside Alaska Store on 2nd Street, where Cantun was handling his Springfield nine-millimeter pistol. Vaughan, seated behind Cantun, negligently took hold of the firearm, which discharged and fatally wounded Cantun. Vaughan, admitting to her lack of firearm experience, acknowledged her negligence in handling the weapon during her caution statement. At the start of the trial, Vaughan promptly entered a guilty plea. Her attorney, Leeroy Banner, expressed remorse for the tragic outcome, noting the close relationship between Vaughan and Cantun as colleagues at Holy Redeemer Credit Union. Justice Derick Sylvester, in a non-custodial sentence agreement accepted by both the prosecution and defense, referenced a comparable case involving Jasmine Hartin. Vaughan was fined fifteen thousand dollars, with five thousand dollars, payable to Cantun’s common-law wife by Thursday, and the remaining ten thousand dollars by September 2024. She was bound over to keep the peace for two years, with a default imprisonment term of twelve months, and prohibited from holding a firearm license for five years.

Fined $15K for Killing Her Co-Worker

Twenty-five-year-old Tehje Vaughan was fined fifteen thousand dollars after she pleaded guilty to one count of manslaughter by negligence in the shooting death of her friend and co-worker, thirty-year-old Charles Canton.

The incident occurred on April 28th, 2023, when Canton was accidentally shot by Vaughan. Vaughan, the daughter of Belize City Councillor Albert Vaughan, was arraigned and granted bail today under strict conditions.

Both worked at Holy Redeemer Credit Union and had just left work to buy drinks when the incident occurred. Police responded to the shooting at 5:17 p.m. in the King’s Park area and found Canton, who was later pronounced dead. Canton, a resident of Sand Hill Village, had parked his vehicle on 2nd Street and was with Vaughn and another individual, Jose Montero. Canton had placed his licensed firearm on the handrest inside the SUV. Vaughn allegedly reached for the weapon, which discharged, fatally injuring Canton.

Twelve Months in Prison for Abusive Stepfather, Devain Flores

One year in prison for physically abusing his three-year-old stepson, that’s the time Devain Flores will spend for concurrent sentences that were handed down by the lower courts this morning. The matter, as we’ve reported, was prosecuted by Commissioner of Police Chester Williams. From the onset, the ComPol pushed for a custodial sentence to be delivered, in light of the public outrage following a video of Flores kicking and punching the infant. Flores pleaded guilty to the charges that were brought against him; however, last week, when he appeared before a senior magistrate, Flores’ witnesses failed to show up in court to testify on his behalf. This morning, following sentencing, ComPol Williams told reporters that he was content with the time given to Flores.

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“I am satisfied, yes, that the court imposed the maximum sentence of twelve months. I wished they had run consecutively, but instead the magistrate chose to have them run concurrently. So, in other words, he will only serve twelve months as opposed to twenty-four months. But in terms of the magistrate imposing the maximum sentence on both counts of twelve months each, I think that the punishment does fit the crime. The child who has been abused and his parents can now feel at ease that the perpetrator will be behind bars, and so for that I am extremely happy.”

Reporter

“And the reason provided for it not to run concurrently.”

Chester Williams

“Well the magistrate did cite precedence and she is right in doing so and by law she does have that discretion. So as much as I am not too satisfied with that, she is acting within the scope of the law in so doing. The magistrate was extremely clear in her assessment of the matter, in terms of saying that we must send a strong message to persons who have care of children. As a society, we must protect our future. Our children are our future and if we don’t do what we can now to protect them, then who is going to do so. So I think the magistrate was very clear in that as well.”