Missing Corozal Man’s Vehicle Allegedly Turns Up in Burrell Boom

Fifty-seven-year-old Rosalito Pacheco, a taxi driver from Corozal Town, mysteriously disappeared in early February. Today, a family of three, a mother and her two sons, was dragged before the Belize City Magistrates Court to be arraigned for handling stolen goods. Police allegedly discovered Pacheco’s vehicle and keys at the home of forty-four-year-old Tricia Young, a resident of the Fresh Pond area in Burrell Boom Village. Young and her two sons, eighteen-year-old Imari Young and twenty-two-year-old Christopher Young, have been jointly charged with the crime of handling stolen goods. The trio appeared before a Senior Magistrate with attorney Richard “Dickie” Bradley.  At their arraignment, they pleaded not guilty to the charge. Their attorney then asked the Senior Magistrate to take record of his clients’ time of detention and when they were brought to court. Bradley contended that the time exceeded forty-eight hours and violated the rights of his clients. Imari and Devin Young also told the court that they were badly beaten by police officers while in custody. The brothers allege that plastic bags were placed over their heads during interrogation and that they were beaten with a two-by-four piece of wood. The court took note of these allegations and with no objection to bail, the trio was granted bail in the sum of two thousand dollars each, plus one surety of the same amount. The court also demanded that they report once a week, on Fridays, to the Burrell Boom Police Station. We heard from their attorney outside the courtroom.

 

Richard “Dickie” Bradley, Attorney

“The disturbing thing is that in the case of the two sons, you heard them individually explain to the senior magistrate the ordeal that they suffered in the case of the second accused, I won’t call his name, he was badly beaten at the police station in Burrell Boom, where in addition to, as he said, wapped several times in a two by four and a plastic bag being put over his head while handcuffed to try to get some air and he was punched and kicked and the younger brother who is only eighteen also suffered some beating at the hands of the police to end up with a charge that they were handling a stolen vehicle which was not found in their yard. It is a serious matter for the police in the sense that the vehicle is said to be owned by a person who has gone missing. So we can understand that they are trying to breakthrough with an investigation but that is no excuse for what we heard in court this morning that the commissioner of police and the minister responsible for the police who are in government for three years need to have some written guidelines and public know. And don’t tell us to make a report at Raccoon Street, noting ever comes out of that. We need an independent investigative arm that deals with police officers who behave like criminals. That is uncalled for to try and suffocate someone to get information which they didn’t end up getting anything for.”