Nicaraguan Man Alleges Belize NGO Scam Left Him Facing Death Threats (Pt.1)

What was supposed to be a path to safety turned into a nightmare for a Nicaraguan refugee who claims he was scammed, threatened, and ultimately driven out of Belize.

Thirty-nine-year-old Eric Omar Hernández Cruz, who once sought amnesty in Belize, filed a criminal complaint at the Benque Viejo Police Station.

According to Cruz, the ordeal began in February when he paid $500 to two men who allegedly promised him ‘amnesty documents’. He was told the men were tied to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Benque Viejo. That turned out to be false. One man, we later discovered, worked with the Human Rights Commission of Belize (HRCB), while the other was employed at Help for Progress, an NGO that partners with UNHCR.

We’ll get to those two organisations and their position on this matter in a few. But first we revisit Cruz’s police complaint.

According to the police report, the individuals were later fired from the organisation. Cruz told police that after the men were fired, “he has been receiving threats through emails and also through ACNUR for Refugees site” (the UNHCR online site).

He told police that the threats began on February 20, 2025, and that he received five threats. However, he said that two were through emails and three through phone calls. So, none via the “ACNUR for Refugees” site?

He said that he was being accused of being the reason for their dismissal. The messages included details about his residence, travel routes, and whereabouts.

Both men have since been terminated, but not for the reasons you might think.

And the story did not end there. Instead, Cruz claims, the real nightmare began.

He told police he was bombarded with emails, phone calls, and threats that revealed disturbing details about his home, his daily movements, and even his travel routes. In his police report, Cruz expressed fear for his life and requested assistance to ensure his safety. He said he is not seeking court action but wanted the police to intervene so that the threats stop. The last phone calls were received on June 10, July 8, and July 9, 2025. The last sentence in the police report stated, “Mr Cruz states he now lives in fear of even going out of his residence, as he strongly suspects” that both men are “behind such threats.”

That particular line is important because Cruz admits that he is not sure that the men he named in the police report are behind the threats.

Cruz painted an even darker picture to News 5 via WhatsApp. “The authorities in Belize recognised us and granted us international protection, but the NGO called Help for Progress, which collaborates with UNHCR in Belize, scammed us by asking us for money to obtain refuge,” he alleged. “They (the two men) charged $1,000, which we paid, but in the end it was all a lie. We had to leave Belize because the threats became very serious; even with guns, we were threatened.”

Cruz says he now lives in Mexico, a refugee a second time.

Meanwhile, neither of the men accused by Cruz has been criminally charged.

News 5 has reached out to the Ministry of Immigration.

UNHCR Belize has distanced itself from the scandal. Mariya Voloshkevich, the officer in charge, told News Five that the agency is “deeply concerned by allegations of fraud and threats targeting vulnerable refugees and asylum-seekers.” She insisted that “the individuals implicated are not affiliated with UNHCR” and said that all UNHCR services are free of charge. The agency, she added, stands ready to tighten oversight and reminded refugees to report complaints directly to their office.

She said, “In Belize, UNHCR does not handle asylum applications, as the Refugee Department directly manages this process.”

But troubling questions remain unanswered.

If the individuals accused were dismissed, why have no charges been brought against them? How did an NGO entrusted with protecting refugees become entangled in allegations of fraud and threats? How did money allegedly change hands? What documents were promised to Cruz?

And.

Was Cruz’s case an isolated betrayal, or the tip of something far larger within Belize’s refugee protection network?

Stay tuned for Part 2…