Corozal Fishermen Await Bail for Cocaine Possession

Six days after five fishermen and a pastor from Burrell Boom were allegedly caught in Orange Walk with one thousand, one hundred and thirty-seven grams of cocaine in a gold Dodge Caravan, the pastor has been released, but the fishermen are still behind bars. They’re waiting for another bail hearing, set for Friday, March twenty-eighth, 2025, and Monday, March thirty-first, 2025, in the High Court of Justice Nigel Pilgrim. The delay happened because the court didn’t have all the necessary documents to consider their bail. The fishermen have two separate attorneys. Senior Counsel Simeon Sampson represents Lerman Norman Leslie and Ronyer Alexander Cruz, while David McKoy represents Freddy Estuardo Chavez, Angel Aragon, Marvin Teul, and Christian and Merilyn White. Outside the courtroom, heartbroken families waited anxiously for good news, only to leave disappointed when the case was adjourned. Inside, Justice Pilgrim first heard from Attorney Sampson, who argued for Leslie’s bail. However, the judge couldn’t proceed without the case facts, which neither Sampson nor the Crown’s representative, Alifah Elrington, had. Elrington explained that the prosecutor handling the case was unavailable. Justice Pilgrim then heard from Attorney McKoy, who had the case facts but agreed that an adjournment was fair to ensure all parties had the necessary documents. The bail hearing for Leslie and Cruz is now set for Friday, March twenty-eighth, 2025, while the hearing for the other four fishermen is on Monday, March thirty-first, 2025, due to McKoy’s availability. The fishermen were initially arraigned on March nineteenth, 2025, for possession of the quantity of cocaine. The bust happened around seven p.m. in Orange Walk, with Pastor Mark Anthony Humes driving the gold Dodge Caravan. One fisherman later cleared Pastor Humes, stating he was just hired to transport them for one hundred and seventy-five dollars and had no knowledge of the drugs. As a result, charges against Humes were dropped on March twenty-first, 2025. The fishermen’s case will continue in the Orange Walk Magistrate’s Court on May twenty-second, 2025.