Michael Whitaker, Aaron Tun Found Murdered in Quintana Roo

The bodies of two Belizean men, wanted for a police investigation, were found alongside three Mexicans in Quintana Roo early Saturday morning. Michael Whitaker, twenty-seven, and Aaron Tun, eighteen, from Corozal District, were shot and left near a building by the Rio Hondo River in Sacxan, Quintana Roo. Their bodies were discovered with three Mexicans who were also shot. Police reported signs of torture and suspect the killings were carried out by cartels in Chetumal. A relative of Whitaker told News Five that he had tried to escape his dangerous lifestyle, but it eventually caught up with him. News Five’s Marion Ali reports.

 

On the Phone: Relative of Michael Whitaker

“He visited his family and then he gone. Honestly, he didn’t give away the location where he was staying. He just used to come in sometimes.”

 

Marion Ali, Reporting

A relative of Michael Whitaker told News Five today that he used to visit sometimes and then leave, but they didn’t know where he stayed. His body was found in Chetumal along with another Belizean, Aaron Tun and three Mexicans on Saturday. Police in Chetumal made the grim discovery next to a building by the Rio Hondo River. Alongside the bodies were messages written in Spanish, containing chilling threats aimed at specific individuals. One message warned against extortion and theft, stating, “This is for all those who are charging protection fees and those who do not allow businesses like cigarette vendors…Stop stealing. Sincerely, you know who.” Commissioner of Police Chester Williams informed reporters that these murders appear to be the work of Mexican drug cartels. Belizean and Mexican authorities are now collaborating to solve this latest cross-border crime.

 

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“The Mexican police in Chatal came across five bodies and among those bodies were two Belizeans from across our district. Again, we continue to collaborate with our Mexican group to see what information can be obtained. But certainly we do believe that, again, based on information that the incident involving those individuals is drug related and may have been carried out by the cartels in the Chetumal area.”

Williams suggested that the Belizeans might have gone to Chetumal for their criminal activities due to the strong police presence and effective operations in northern Belize.

 

Chester Williams

“Just to solidify the fact that our northern operations are really holding because of the constant pressure coming through the operations, those individuals who are Belizeans had fled Belize and went to live in Chetumal to avoid the operations. And, again, it goes back to what I said before, you sleep with dogs, you catch their fleas. They went to Chetumal, they are engaged with the cartels. What our northern operations are doing is serve as a bulwark to prevent the cartels from coming into our country and operating and I believe that we’re doing very good at that.”

But why were the Belizeans killed? According to one of the messages found on a piece of cardboard, they were involved in collecting protection fees and stealing.

 

Chester Williams

“From what I’ve seen. What we have gathered so far is that these people seemingly are operating for the cartels in Mexico. And, uh, they are collecting fees and the fees being collected is being stolen by them. So they’re not reporting to their bosses on their collections, and because of that, that is the reason why they were killed.”

 

Whitaker’s relative who went to collect his remains in Chetumal today told News Five that he had tried to exit that risky life, but that it eventually caught up with him.

 

On the Phone: Relative of Michael Whitaker

“He made a choice to choose probably that life. He did want to leave, but things happened and he couldn’t leave. He wanted to leave that life behind and be a better citizen. But it was too late to change it. Once you’re in that life, it’s either you’re going deeper or you’re not dead as well.”

 

Meanwhile, a third Belizean, Joshua Hall, is also wanted by the police for another investigation. It’s believed that Hall was with Whitaker and Tun in Chetumal but managed to escape and return to Belize.

 

Chester Williams

“There’s another person of interest that we’re looking for one Joshua Hall. From what we understand, was along with that group, but he was able to escape. And from what we are getting is that he’s back in Belize, and we are looking for him. We do have a bench warrant for his arrest. So once he’s found he’ll be taken into custody.”

 

The commissioner is convinced that the murder of Raheem Usher just days before was not related to this latest one.

 

Chester Williams

“We are certain to some extent that Raheem Usher was killed by locals and again, I can say to you that we have, we have good information in terms of who those locals are. Two of them we believe are dead.”

 

Reporter

“Okay, so it is kind of connected in a way, if you believe that these two men were, killed Raheem.”

 

Chester Williams

“Doesn’t mean that they’re connected, no. Possibilities, yes, but doesn’t give a definitive answer.”

 

Whitaker’s family said he never mentioned going across the border. Tun’s family chose not to comment. Marion Ali for News Five.

 

In the Raheem Usher case, the postmortem of twenty-nine-year-old Raheem Usher revealed he was shot four times in the head and starved for nearly a month before his body was found near a bridge in San Antonio Village, Orange Walk. His hands and feet were bound, and despite a written message found with him, police believe his killers are from Belize.