Belize City Man to Stand Trial for Attempted Murder

A Belize City man is headed to the Supreme Court after being committed to stand trial for attempted murder. Thirty-seven-year-old Mark Stevens appeared in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court today, where his preliminary inquiry wrapped up just before noon. Stevens is accused of stabbing thirty-one-year-old Juan Carlos Rios Pineda on June eighth, 2024, while Pineda was walking his dog near Lord Ridge Cemetery. According to police, Pineda identified Stevens as his attacker, saying he was chased and stabbed multiple times with a kitchen knife. A witness, Pineda’s landlord, reportedly tried to intervene but was unsuccessful. Police later recovered a long-sleeve shirt and the suspected weapon, a wooden-handled kitchen knife, at the cemetery. The prosecution has submitted over fifteen witness statements and ten pieces of evidence. Stevens, who has been behind bars since his arraignment last June, was offered bail again but remains in custody. His trial is set for the October 2025 session of the Supreme Court.