Family of Belmopan Kidnapping Victim Breaks Silence

Police have detained and charged four members of a Belmopan family in connection with the kidnapping and sexual assault of a twenty-three-year-old pregnant woman. The four were arraigned today in Belmopan Magistrates Court, where bail was denied, and they were remanded to Belize Central Prison until January 22, 2025. News Five’s Paul Lopez spoke with a relative of the victim, who shared that he came forward to shed light on the torment inflicted on her by the accused. Here’s more on that report.

 

Paul Lopez, Reporting

A family of four accused of kidnapping, aggravated assault, wounding, and sexual assault is tonight behind bars at the Belize Central Prison. The victim, a twenty-three-year-old pregnant woman, remains hospitalized tonight. One of the alleged perpetrators is her husband, twenty-four-year-old Luis Tiul Jr. Their relationship began inside a church as a beautiful love story. This is according to the victim’s brother, Wilmer Cruz.

 

Wilmer Cruz, Brother of Victim

“They attend this church and deh the guh and guh and guh and I get invited one time and it was so beautiful and the people were so beautiful. One time I meet this family and the lee gial grow up and at the age of eighteen she meets this lee bally that is the pastor’s son and they decided to get married.”

 

And after marriage, the couple had a child.

 

Wilmer Cruz

“When they married they start to live together and all this while I don’t know about them like that because we are not into, I have my own to tend to. They had a kid together and now this turn out to be the case now, a surprising story, meanwhile all this while I though they were living happily and everything.”

 

 

The victim’s family believed that if there was any safe place for her, it would be in the home of a pastor since she is married to his son. But that trust was shattered on Wednesday when police conducted an operation at the pastor’s home, discovering the woman, seven months pregnant, severely injured, tied to a step, and forced to sit in her own waste. According to police, the husband’s family held her captive after she attempted to leave him. Videos obtained by News 5 show the victim in a hospital bed, lying down in excruciating pain.

 

 

Wilmer Cruz

“Back then I hear a lee thing that the lee gial mih want separate and thing like that right. But from then I never hear no more form that, but now surprisingly my mom call me and said son, you hear what happen with the lee gial, she the eena hospital. I said, what cant’ be. I run to the hospital and when I see the lee gial, she the eena wah terrible condition. I find her in a condition like when you torture somebody, kidnap somebody and find them in a room, like a movie scene. Her hands all burned, swell, her feet scarred like they were tied. The lee gial maga, and she is pregnant. First thing come into your mind dah guh murder somebody and that is wrong, because I put myself in trouble. That is why I want justice serve among these people, because I want them to know that she have family to.”

 

The alleged culprits are forty-five-year-old Luis Tiul Senoir, Tiul Junior, forty-three-year-old Elizabeth Tiul and fifty-nine-year-old Matilda Games, who were all arraigned this morning in Belmopan. The charges range from administering noxious matter to aggravated assault, wounding, sexual assault, and kidnapping. We asked the family for comments as they were escorted by police.

 

 

Paul Lopez

“You guys have anything to say, you guys have anything to say? Are the allegations true. Are you a true a pastor. Do you have anything to say sir? Are the allegations true?”

 

 

 

Neither of the two men responded to our questions. A man who identified himself as Tiul senior’s son attempted to stop us from asking more questions.

 

Paul Lopez

“Please I am doing a job, are the allegations true? Do you have anything to say? Sir, do you have anything to say? Is the allegations against your family true, would you like to clarify?”

 

And then this happened.

 

“Move dah Camera, front of my face, move dah camera, front of my face. Move dah camera front ah my face.”

 

 

 

 

Wilmer Cruz

“To my acknowledgement the family has the same mentality like the accused. All of them look like they have the same vibe and the same mentality, because that tribe is a nutsy tribe. You see how they gone atta you and the camera man suh deh, that means you have people that will have to be caregul of those people, because they don’t think, they just act.”

 

Paul Lopez

“One of the questions that people are asking is where is her family, is it a case where the family was not checking up on her because they thought she was ok and living a happy life?”

 

Wilmer Cruz

“My mom told me that she nuh know because she doesn’t keep up like that. She knows that she lives with them and she have she business and kids and everybody have their own. So, if you decide to live then you suppose to live in a condition and maybe she couldn’t get to my mom, because they had her kidnapped.”

 

 

Paul Lopez

“Is it regretful though and perhaps a lesson that as family we should check up a bit more on our loved ones?”

 

Wilmer Cruz

“Correct we should check up on our loved ones, but when we talk about they married, everybody should keep in their own process.  But in this condition, this is a big thing concerned to every Belizean, check up on your kids, check up on your family, stuff like that.”

 

Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.