2024-03-15 - Channel 5 Belize

Stake Bank Goes into Receivership Amid Lawsuit Against G.O.B.

Ground was officially broken for the commencement of the Stake Bank Tourism Development Project back in 2018, and work got underway for the mega cruise facility shortly thereafter. But tonight, after investing north of one hundred million dollars, Port Coral, a Michael Feinstein initiative, has gone into receivership. Earlier today, News Five confirmed that a receiver had been appointed for the project during a meeting on Thursday. That individual is Marlowe Neal. The receivership is expected to last for a period of between six to nine months with a view to complete the construction of piers that would allow for cruise ships to berth at Stake Bank. But there is also multi-million dollar claim that had been brought against the Briceno administration prior to Stake Bank going into receivership. Earlier today, we caught up with Prime Minister John Briceño, who spoke briefly on the matter, as well as the status of a piece of legislation that was to have been introduced in place of the definitive agreement.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“When it comes to the issue of the receivership, that‘s a matter for the bank and I‘m sure that they may have their reasons why it is that they believe that they have to put the Stake Bank project in receivership. But, as we know, the main players behind the Stake Bank Project decided to sue the government and from what I am told there is really no case. So I can‘t understand why it is that they would want to sue the government.”

Reporter

“What do you believe this means for the cruise sector? Will Belize ever see a berthing port?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I do believe that we will. As we said, there are three areas: there is Stake Bank, there is Portico and also now there is the Port of Belize. And so, all of that is still remaining in play and we will see which is the one to be developed into a cruise port that can meet not only the needs for today, but also for ten, twenty years from today.”

Reporter

“This is the largest receivership, I believe, in Belize’s banking history. Do you think it will affect the banking sector, though?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“No, it will not. The Central Bank has been very clear and also, so has Atlantic Bank. They have been very clear from day one that they are going to ensure that they protect every single cent of the depositors. So, no, I do not expect it to be a problem.”

Isani Cayetano

“PM, where are we with the legislation that’s forthcoming with respect of cruise tourism development in this country?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Well, nowhere. Until we know where we’re going, it does not make sense to pass this piece of legislation. We’re pretty much ready, but depending on which direction we will go then we may need to make some adjustments to that piece of legislation. So that is why we are holding on to it and we will deal with it when the time is appropriate.”

Reporter

“Notwithstanding that you say the claimants don’t have a case, has the government engaged with them? Have you met with them?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“No, I have not met with them, but Mr. Feinstein did call me on Wednesday wanting to have a meeting, so I hope to meet with them next week.”

PM Holds Firm on Position Regarding Sugar Redundancy

Prime Minister John Briceño is scheduled to meet with the Christian Workers Union on Monday to discuss the tumultuous state of affairs between the Port of Belize and the stevedores. As we reported earlier this week, employees of P.B.L. effected a work-to-rule after repeatedly demanding that government compensate them for sugar redundancies after the shipment of bulk sugar was relocated to Big Creek a few years ago. But G.O.B. remains resolute in its position and today PM Briceño echoed the sentiment that no one lost their job as a result of the transfer. Here’s what he had to say ahead of Monday’s meeting.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I’ve had several with the stevedores and every time we meet, we come with an agreement but it seems that when they leave the meeting they come up with other issues. I said to them from the beginning, let‘s not talk about sugar or the sugar money. I said, you have your position and we have our position that there is no claim for no kind of redundancy. Nobody got fired, so there is no sugar money. But as a government, we are prepared to be able to address many of the pending issues between the stevedores and the Port of Belize so that we can modernize the port. The way the port has been running for the past ten, fifteen, twenty years, it‘s not in the interest of the port or in the interest of the country and I have been explaining to the stevedores, now we have competition, there is more than one port. So when you decide that you don‘t want to discharge a ship, the ship would either go back to their home country, quite likely the United States, or they go down south to discharge their container. That‘s what happened with sugar. So when they behave the way they do, they decide not to offload, they are shooting themselves in the foot. We need to be able to find common ground where we both, stevedores, Port of Belize and the Government of Belize, that we want to find how we could move this forward, how we could modernize and that is the intent, to protect their interest. I understand and we want to do that, that is why the government made an offer of one point five million dollars to say, listen, let‘s stop fighting about everything. Let‘s come up with the new working practices. You can‘t work more than fifteen hours and when you‘re finished working fifteen hours a new gang finishes if the ship is not finished offloading. Let‘s look at the number of gangs, the port wanted to bring it down to twelve, there‘s fourteen and the stevedores said they would not accept it. I said, okay, in the CBA that you have already signed you‘re talking about thirteen, okay, let‘s stay with thirteen. So we‘ve agreed to that. So, most of the things we‘ve agreed, they‘re just small little things.”

PM Briceño Responds to B.S.C.F.A.’s Demand for Commission of Inquiry

In the north, the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association has also issued a release in respect of the proposed commission of inquiry into the operations at the Belize Sugar Industries Limited. While government has been advised not to proceed with the probe, the B.S.C.F.A. has expressed its strong opposition to that recommendation and has gone on to criticize the Briceño administration. The Prime Minister told reporters earlier today that he would waste his time responding to the B.S.C.F.A.’s criticism.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I will not waste my time in answering the BSCFA. I think and I will do what I believe is in the interest of the industry and in the interest of Belize. We have three other associations that are working with the sugar mill. They‘re not the only ones so let‘s start off with that. I have said to them that there has to be proper consultations. There were not proper consultations. The way the commission of inquiry, the terms of reference, the way it was set out, it was a terms of reference for the BSCFA. So I am meeting with the minister on Monday and on Monday we are going to finalize the terms and then we‘re going to proceed. But if we were to proceed the way they want us to proceed, we‘ll be wasting our time because we are going to be taken to court and the court is going tp rule against us. We are not going to appeal just because they asked us to appeal. We are going to appeal if there is a case and it seems as though there is not a case to appeal.”

Off Duty Officer Shoots PG Resident At Basketball Game

On Thursday March fourteenth, sometime around nine fifteen p.m., police received reports of a shooting outside of the Punta Gorda sports auditorium. Officers visited the area and encountered Police Constable Feliz Fernandez attached to the Toledo Formation. PC Fernandez reported that he, along with his common-law wife, went to watch a basketball game. According to Fernandez, they sat on the bleachers and a while later they were harassed by one Richard Valerio who is his common-law’s ex- partner, who was shouting profanities to them, including saying, “somebody will die tonight”. Fernandez went on to say that to avoid a confrontation, they moved to another area. However, they were accosted by Valerio, who continued with his profanities. Fernandez further stated that he decided to leave and asked a fellow officer to escort him to his vehicle. Fernandez claims that Valerio later inflicted damage to his car which was parked outside of the auditorium, by shattering the windshield with rocks. The report further states that PC Fernandez ordered Richard Valerio to drop the rock, that is when Richard Valerio threw a rock in PC Fernandez’s direction but missed. Fernandez then claims that, fearing for his life, he drew his licensed mine millimeter pistol and fired a single shot in Valerio’s direction. Valerio then ran inside the complex area and was then immediately rushed by police to the Punta Gorda Hospital for medical treatment for injuries to his lower back. We spoke with the sister of the victim, who wishes to remain unnamed. She stated that contrary to Fernandez’s account, her brother had not approached or interacted with the officer. According to her, her brother had been the victim of multiple incidents of harassment from the officer and had even been assaulted previously inside his home. Accusations are that the dispute ignited over a shared romantic partner and that her brother had been on the receiving end of injustice for several months now. Commissioner of Police has ordered an internal investigation concurrent with the criminal investigation into this incident. An update will be provided at the end of the investigation. The firearm was retrieved for ballistic testing.

Man Pleads Guilty to Murdering His Family

He murdered his mother, sister and stepfather in November 2012 and since then, has tried everything to stall the case by changing several attorneys, requesting two sentence indications and frustrated a trial judge to the point of recusing himself from the case. But today, thirty-six-year-old Jared Ranguy opted not to stand trial and instead entered a guilty plea via a teleconference session from the Belize Central Prison. It was an emotional morning and a packed courtroom before High Court Justice, Nigel Pilgrim. News Five’s Marion Ali was there and filed this report.

Marion Ali, Reporting

Jared Ranguy, who had for many years tried to usurp the justice system, by firing his attorneys to force adjournments, has finally decided not to let his court matter languish any longer by pleading guilty, instead of going to a trial. Relatives of the three deceased persons sobbed as Ranguy admitted to the court that he murdered his mother, Karen Skeen, his sister, Teena Skeen and his stepfather, Robert Vellos, as they slept inside their home in Ladyville. In responding to questions posed by High Court Judge, Nigel Pilgrim, Ranguy told the court that he indeed murdered his three family members and that he did so without provocation. He said that he was admitting to the triple murder without being coerced by anyone to do so, and that he was pleading guilty because he is guilty of the crime. When the judge asked the Director of Public Prosecutions, Cheryl-Lynn Vidal, who sat in for Crown Counsel Riis Cattouse, to read the details of the three murders, Ranguy told the court that it wasn’t necessary because he was admitting to wilfully killing his family. The facts were read anyway, in order that he could agree to the sequence of events and admit guilt. D.P.P Vidal told reporters that she expected today’s outcome.

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal, Director of Public Prosecutions

“I think that we anticipated [this] because of the way the discussions were going that we would have reached this point.”

Marion Ali

“And this came after many years of adjournments and change of attorneys and a previous sentence indication and even a judge recusing himself.”

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal

“Yes, I imagine that the prisoner, we can call him now, would have taken a very long time to come to terms with what the sentence might look like if he pleaded guilty to three counts of murder. Whatever operated on his mind in recent months that led him to this point.”

This point for the family was also one that they had waited almost twelve years to see. While they were still very shaken, Karen Skeen’s brother, Rene Skeen, told reporters that they were consoled by his nephew’s guilty plea.

Rene Skeen, Brother of Deceased

“We’d like to thank God. The most important thing, we got justice. And the emotions, that’s – you can’t explain it. It’s been over 11 years we’ve been waiting for this, and the day has finally come. We will never get full justice. Three people are dead, but for him pleading guilty, it helped a little bit. The pain – we can deal with it a little bit better now.”

Skeen said the guilty plea saved the family a lot more heartaches than if there had been a trial.

Rene Skeen

“The family wouldn’t have to go relive what happened 11 years ago. We would have to be in court seeing guns, knives, bloody clothes, everything. We believe in the system. We’ve been doing interviews with you guys for years and years. We have family members coming from the U.S just for court every six, eight months, nine months, so after trying to manipulate the system for so long, justice caught up with him. Although we would like to see no parole at the end of the day, like I said, for the family, we got what we were requesting for him to say, look, I’m guilty. We used to say that. You guys interviewed us and we said, you guys asked, can we forgive him? I used to say no, but now you know what? I think I can.”

Ranguy’s decision came after he had gotten a sentence indication from Justice Pilgrim on March first. In that sentence indication, Justice Pilgrim informed Ranguy that if he entered a guilty plea, he could get three life sentences without the possibility of parole until after forty years, minus the eleven years that he has served behind bars. Vidal said that the guilty plea has saved considerable time because of what that process would have entailed.

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal

“There were quite a number of witnesses who would have had to have been called. There would have been voir dires in relation to the statement that would have been given admissions that were made. So it did save the court some time, but of course this matter has been before the court for a very long time.”

Rene Skeen says that moving on now will be a bit easier for the survivors.

Marion Ali

“Now this has taken a toll on all of you. We heard the subs in the courtroom. How are you all coping now?”

Rene Skeen

“Man, today the family decided to meet no matter what would have happened today for a prayer meeting. It’s going to be a good prayer meeting today. We’re going to cope better now.”

Marion Ali for News Five.

Justice Pilgrim has ordered that a psychiatric evaluation be conducted on Ranguy and that the Belize Central Prison present a report on him. As the D.P.P. pointed out, the sentence indication is not the actual sentence. Ranguy’s attorney, Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith has until April twenty-second to submit a mitigation plea in writing and the court was adjourned until May thirteenth.

D.P.P. Says Yes to Prosecutor’s Criticism, No to the Method

This week, we reported on the matter involving Aaron Wilson, who was detained for almost a day on grounds that he was boisterous towards a police officer when he confronted her at the police station in Ladyville. As it turned out, the police officer had hung up the phone on Wilson and he went to the station to tell her about it. Well, Wilson was held for about twenty-two hours, and following that, Crown Counsel, Riis Cattouse fired off a letter to the Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams in which he criticized the police for what he felt was frequent violation of the human rights of persons who are detained. The matter did not sit well with Williams or the Minister of Home Affairs, Kareem Musa, who both thought it was unfortunate that Cattouse had that to say. Today, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Cheryl-Lynn Vidal told reporters that it is not what Cattouse said that she had a problem with, but the way he went about it.

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal, Director of Public Prosecutions

“Whenever a file is being advised on and there has been any impropriety on the part of the police, the [Crown] Counsel would write about it in their memoranda. Perhaps this is the first time it has been sent to the media.”

Reporter

“Okay, so this is standard practice for the Crown Counsel to engage the Commissioner in this manner?”

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal

“I don’t think the Commissioner directly, but anytime a file is sent to the office and there is some evidence of impropriety on the part of the police and the Counsel will speak on it. I do not believe that Counsel has in the past written directly to the Commissioner in that manner, but it is not as though the DPP’s office is in the habit of endorsing police impropriety.”

Reporter

“Do you endorse the fact that Crown Counsel Cattouse decided, you know what, this is a matter that I should, and he took it upon himself to write to the Commissioner of Police?”

Cheryl-Lyn Vidal

“No, that part of it is not endorsed.”

G.L.C Says Attorney Breached Code of Conduct

The General Legal Council has decided following a complaint brought against a Belizean attorney by another retired attorney of New Zealand. That lawyer, Jinyue Young, had alleged that attorney-at-law, Bryan Neal failed to update Mister Young on the status of a matter for which Neal was retained in March 2023. In that case, Young was hired to act against a tenant of Young’s who had owed rent arrears. The Council found that while Neal had adequate time to provide written evidence in response to the allegation to the council when the complaint was served on him, he didn’t do so. The council dealt with the matter on February ninth and after listening to both sides, found that Neal had breached, among others, rule twenty-eight, one, which stipulates that an attorney must deal with their clients’ business as expeditiously as possible and must provide their clients with full information on the progress of the clients’ business. The Council also found that in correspondence from Neal, he did not indicate that he would not deal with the matter for Young, who had paid him five thousand dollars to deal with the matter for him. Neal, however, has refunded Young the money in full and has also offered to help find an attorney who would be able to take on the job.

B.T.L. Needs a New C.E.O.

A vacancy is being advertised for the highest position at B.T.L., that’s for a new Chief Executive Officer. In today’s edition of the Amandala Newspaper, a full-page ad was published inviting interested candidates to apply for the post. This means that C.E.O. Ivan Tesucum who assumed the post five years ago is stepping down. Tesucum has been with the telecoms provider for over twenty years and has distinguished himself in leadership with financial and operation experience in Belize and the United States. Tesucum was promoted to C.E.O. in 2019 after serving as Chief financial officer since 2012.

A Third Term for Mayor Wagner and the Belize City Council

This morning, a new Belize City Council led by Mayor Bernard Wagner was sworn in for another three-year term at City Hall. The event was bittersweet as the People’s United Party and the Belize City Council continues to mourn the loss of city administrator Stephanie Lindo. Earlier today, the P.U.P., as well as ten councilors and Mayor Wagner gathered at the Caribbean Motors Showroom for the swearing-in ceremony. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports.

Bernard Wagner, Belize City Mayor

“I, Bernard Wagner, being duly elected as a member of the Belize City Council, do solemnly swear that I shall at all times, to the best of my ability, exercise the powers and perform the duties of my office in the best interest of the residents of Belize City in accordance with the constitution, laws and regulations of Belize and of Belize City. So help me, God.”

The symbolic transition of power from one administration to another is a significant event in local government. The swearing-in ceremony marks the official transfer of control and influence from the outgoing Belize City Council to the members who are newly elected. This morning, a new municipal government led by returning Mayor Bernard Wagner, swore an oath of office.

Bernard Wagner

“This third consecutive swearing-in as mayor is an immeasurable honor. My gratitude and my promise to remain a faithful mayor are equally overpowering. At this moment, our team is fueled by a surge of triumph and overwhelming public support, yet our heart aches at the loss of our beloved city administrator, Mrs. Stephanie Lindo. We have proven time and time again that we are capable of overcoming adversity and we remain steadfast in our commitment to serving the residents of Belize City. Together, we will persevere once again and make strides towards a brighter future for our community, keeping her legacy alive every step of the way.”

Taking the oath of office gives legal legitimacy to the elected officials. It also confirms their authority to make decisions, enact laws, and represent the community.

Henry Charles Usher, P.U.P. Chairman

“Today, we are swearing in our Belize City Council for the term 2024/2027. Election campaigns, those times are over. It is time to get to work and our team, the team you see assembled here is a fusion of so many talented individuals. As chairman, I am proud of all of you and I thank you and your families for the sacrifices that you have made and for the sacrifices that you still need to make. Today, we have 3-peaters, Mayor, Allan and Javier. Someway, somehow, Javier is always there, isn’t he. Yoh can’t put down Gold Dust, bwai. So we have the 3-peaters, Mayor, Allan and Javier. We have the repeaters: Kaya, Stephanne and Edmund, and we have the new seaters: Malcolm, Dorian, Eluide and Sherwin. Congratulations and a big round of applause for all of them.”

The order of business upon returning to City Hall next week is to tackle the existing drainage situation across the Old Capital. Mayor Wagner and his team are committed to completing these essential projects.

Bernard Wagner

“Di biggest projects da di drains. Drains, drains, drains. That has been the call on the streets in Belize City, that people want the drains to be really shaped up, maintained, have them connected to the canals and the river to the sea. If we can get that sort of drainage down, we would be in a much better position given that in the next three to four months we face the hurricane season. So that will be priority number one to really get into drains and maintenance.”

By reciting the oath, officials publicly commit to fulfilling their duties and responsibilities. It serves as a reminder of their obligation to serve the public interest. The swearing-in is a crucial moment that establishes the foundation for effective governance and public service.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Now we could celebrate this victory, a historic victory by numbers probably hardly ever seen in the political scene and everybody, anybody, would love to have that kind of affirmation of support from your voters. But with that kind of margin of support, of love comes great responsibility. For those that get a lot, a lot is expected from them. That means that people are going to stop you on the street and they are going to talk to you about their streets or they’re going to talk to you about their garbage or about some club di mek too much noise or the drain noh di work or di park need fi fix and it’s so easy to say, you know what, right now da noh office hours.”

Today brought together community members, leaders and stakeholders and fostered a sense of unity and shared purpose. It also provides insight into CitCo’s intended policies and initiatives. Isani Cayetano for News Five.

B.E.B.L. in the Throes of Another Player Controversy

It is déjà vu for fans of the Belize Elite Basketball League. The semi-pro basketball league has once again found itself in the throes of another controversy. The Orange Walk Running Rebels have withdrawn from the 2024 B.E.B.L. season. The organization wrote to the league commissioner on Wednesday announcing its withdrawal. The Running Rebels, a team that is currently standing in sixth place for this season, provided a list of seven reasons for its withdrawal. Their letter took shots at team owners, officials and the league commissioner Glenn Gill. The team’s ownership contends that there are major deficiencies in the league and called on Commissioner Gill to resign from his post. With the Running Rebels now out of the 2024 season, only six teams remain. And Gill says he has nowhere to go, because he is backed by the confidence of all remaining team owners. We spoke with him today.

Glenn Gill, Commissioner, B.E.B.L.

“The first unfortunate situation occurred when there was supposed to be a deal between a company and the league, and the owners voted against it. I think that is where everything started to go downhill, and then the signing of this player, the nonattendance of meetings, the expression to the other owners that they are out.

Like in any organization there will be some turmoil whether it is self-imposed or not. You would imagine that as the owners of a company you would sit with your teammates, you would sit with your other members and discuss whatever problem there is and come to a solution that would satisfy everybody.”

Paul Lopez

“Is it your view that the Orange Walk Rebel’s management was reluctant to sit down and have a rational discussion over the issues they raised?”

Glenn Gill

“Definitely so?”

Paul Lopez

“How does the league recover from this and do you see this affecting the remainder of the season.”

Glenn Gill

“As I said, when this whole thing start explode, I was taken a back thinking I was helping a situation and it turned into something I didn’t expect it to turn into any at all. But yes, this is a black eye for the league, and we didn’t expect it. But the only thing we can do from here is pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and try.”