Two Belize City men stand accused of robbing a businessman of his firearm on Friday morning. Twenty-four-year-old Edward Saldano and twenty-one-year-old Elan White, a maintenance worker of Ladyville, were charged jointly for robbery after they allegedly held up Dennis Morey and stole a Smith and Wesson brand revolver from him. The duo appeared unrepresented in the lower courts earlier today where they pleaded not guilty to the charge. On January nineteenth, sixty-four-year-old Dennis Morey visited Precinct One where he reported to police that sometime after 8:30 that morning he was approached by a pair of men riding on separate bicycles. According to the villager from San Juan, one of the men placed a gun at his head while his accomplice proceeded to relieve him of the revolver. This afternoon, Assistant Commissioner of Police Hilberto Romero spoke on the incident.
“On Friday, January 19th, 2024, Dennis Morey reported that he was on Plues Street conducting business when he was approached by two male persons armed with firearms. The persons then proceeded to hold him up and they stole from him one .38 revolver and then made good their escape. Aa investigation was carried out and we have since arrested and charged Edward Saldano and Elan White for the crime of robbery.”
Britney Gordon
“Was that the only thing stolen from the [businessman]?”
Hilberto Romero
“That was the only item stolen.”
Saldano and White were denied bail and remanded to the Belize Central Prison until April 22nd, 2024.
The case of a former employee of the Belize Sports Council was today adjourned before High Court Judge, Nigel Pilgrim. During the virtual session this morning, attorney Darrell Bradley, argued over the classification of charges that were brought against the defendant, Ivan Ayuso. The question of whether theft or money laundering was the right charge brought against Ayuso, based on the use of the monies after being stolen, became an argument that will be decided upon at a later date. Both the defense and the prosecution, led by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Cheryl-Lyn Vidal, have differing views on whether theft or money laundering ought to be the charge that Ayuso should be facing. Ayuso, a senior accounts clerk at the National Sports Council, is accused of theft of one point zero nine million dollars during the time that he was there in the years preceding 2016. The charges followed revelations brought out in an audit report of the Sport Council’s finances, a former attorney for Ayuso had said publicly following the charges that Ayuso was responsible for preparing checks, for which he was not authorized to sign. In January of 2021, Ayuso was granted bail in the sum of three hundred thousand dollars. Ayuso was ordered to return to court on January thirty-first, when a decision will be made on the charges for which he faces trial. Ivan Ayuso was also charged back in 2002 with arson in connection with the fire that destroyed the Paslow Building. He was acquitted of the charge.
A resident of Mahogany Heights is indebted to the court for four thousand, five hundred dollars after being charged for drug trafficking. Twenty-year-old Emmanuel Thompson pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply when he appeared unrepresented before the magistrate’s court earlier today. On Saturday, Thompson was caught red-handed in possession of two hundred and thirty four grams of cannabis following a pursuit by police officers. During the chase, he was seen disposing a bag containing two parcels of weed. In court this morning, Thompson was fined and given until August thirty-first to clear the debt or, in default, serve eighteen months at the Belize Central Prison.
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A Belize City resident was shot and killed over the New Year’s weekend, as he left the parking lot of a popular nightclub. Tonight, police have turned over surveillance footage of the incident to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, awaiting further instructions. From the look of it, twenty-eight-year-old Trevor Brown got into an altercation with several other patrons in the parking lot and the situation escalated quickly, resulting in deadly gunfire. Here’s News Five’s Isani Cayetano with that story.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
A deadly New Year’s Eve shooting in Belize City bookended the violence that gripped the Old Capital during the Christmas holidays. In the wee small hours on Sunday morning, an altercation in the parking lot at Thirsty Thursdays ended in an exchange of gunfire and when the shooting subsided, twenty-eight-year-old Trevor Brown had been mortally wounded.
Anthony Perry
Anthony Perry, Stepfather of Deceased
“As the family, everybody is just mourning the loss of my son and really we noh happy wid weh happen, but we wahn mek God do ih course. Soh fi now, we actually di plan di funeral and we di wait fi sih more or less weh di police dehn wahn investigate so we know more or less who kill ahn.”
What transpire in the parking lot was an altercation between patrons leaving the establishment. Surveillance footage shows the vehicle that Brown was driving when it rear-ended a pickup truck nearby. The men then confront each other before Brown and occupants of his vehicle got in and attempted to drive off. In the process, it would appear as though he deliberately swerved in the direction of the person he had just exchanged words with. Brown exited and began firing.
“Police responded to a shooting at Newtown Barracks, at a parking lot. Upon their arrival, information was received that Trevor Brown received gunshot injuries and he was rushed to the KHMH for treatment. He was then pronounced dead on arrival at the KHMH. Information received was that Trevor Brown had an altercation with another male person at the parking lot and at some point both of them pulled out firearms and fire at each other.”
Brown’s older sibling was in bed when he received a phone call from their stepfather. Anthony Perry was calling to inform him of the deadly encounter moments earlier.
Travis Brown
Travis Brown, Brother of Deceased
“I mi deh eena my bed. Nobody know that I mi come back from down south because I deh mostly down south. I get wahn call from my stepfather and I sih he di call me and I return back fi he call. He neva know I deh eena my bed and he da like, “Ah call yoh fi tell yoh that dehn just shot Trevor and dehn kill Trevor.” We just talk Friday before I leff. We di talk bout vehicle. He just buy ih vehicle and di man tell me, ih seh, “Mek ah borrow yoh battery.” I seh, “Hold on to di battery ‘til Monday cause I noh wahn need it ‘til Monday. We deh fronta fi he vehicle and we di talk from one thing to the next. We gaan eena ih vehicle, show me ih radio cause I da di most one weh know bout vehicle, yoh know, and ih di show me ih radio. Ah tell ahn da probably just wahn lee fuse or something. I take off and I gaan south. That da di last time I sih or hear from my bredda.”
According to a situation report shared by the Belize Police Department, Brown was walking back to his Mazda when a pair of men came from behind and opened fire on him. The windshield of the vehicle was damaged and the men reportedly fled from the scene.
ACP Hilberto Romero
“Shortly thereafter, a male person was apprehended in the Yabra area and he was found with a gunshot injury to the head and he was taken to the hospital and he’s presently admitted receiving treatment. Several expended shells were found at the scene and vehicles were scene with bullet holes. A thorough investigation is being carried out in this incident and statements are being recorded. We have video footage and these will be forwarded to the DPP for determination. The person that is admitted at the hospital is still there and so we await when he is released to conduct an interview.”
Brown was among nine children being raised by his stepfather who told News Five this afternoon that the family is not interested in reprisal of their loved one.
Anthony Perry
“Pan fu we half as wahn family, we need fi mek sure that we stay strong as one and do what we need to do to lay my son to rest. Well I noh into this grievance and vengeance and weh everybody into. Everything weh I leff it deh eena God’s hands and when the time is right he wahn fix it. So fi now, that’s all I got fi seh.”
Admittedly, Brown, by his brother’s words, was no angel. He had flaws about himself, but the family did not think that the call they would receive on New Year’s Eve was to inform of his demise.
Travis Brown
“Ah noh something weh I wah seh I di run from, but ah just never expect it, especially fi di New Year, yoh know. My lee bredda and everything, ih do good, ih do bad, I cyant seh nothing, ih done happen.”
Police in Belize City continue to investigate the shooting murder of thirty-eight-year-old Jorge Lozano. On Friday night, Lozano was heading home on Madam Liz Avenue when he was targeted. He was shot several times and rushed to the K.H.M.H. where he died the following day. Police say that they have a possible motive but no suspects. News Five’s Hipolito Novelo reports
Hipolito Novelo reporting
Thirty-eight-year-old Jorge Lozano was shot several times on Friday night. At around six o’clock, Lozano was on his way home on Madam Liz Avenue and as he approached the front gate the gunman pounced, firing a barrage of bullets at Lozano.
“Investigation revealed that Lozano was at the street when a white car pulled out. A male person then fired several shots at his direction, causing his fatal injuries. No suspects at this time.”
Lozano was rushed to the hospital where he fought for his life. He died on Saturday morning. Investigators say Lozano is known to police and his murder might be gang related.
ACP Hilberto Romero “Yes, we have dealt with him in the past and the investigation at this time continues as we have no suspects at this time.
Reporter
“But do you believe that it is somehow gang related?
ACP Hilberto Romero
“Probably it is something to that effect.”
Following, Lozano’s murder, police received information of retaliation. As such, some of the victim’s relatives were detained for forty eight hours.
ACP Hilberto Romero
“There was some threat of retaliation and so we took some action to prevent any retaliation regarding this murder.”
Lozano became the second to last person to be murdered in 2023. Reporting for News Five, I am Hipolito Novelo.
2023 recorded fewer murders than any previous year, and perhaps going all the way back to 2008. While there was a spate of murders occurring over the extended Christmas holidays, prior to that, the count was somewhere in the vicinity of eighty-four. And when the Christmas holidays ended, so too were the lives of Christian Ramos, Darnell Puerto and Kaleem Chun by gun violence. Two of them occurred in Belize City and the other in Punta Gorda. Back in September, when the Belize Police Department’s Crime Observatory had released its Compstat figures, Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams had indicated that the last time Belize recorded murders in double digits was back in 2013 with ninety-nine murders. And the least deadliest three years going back have been that same year – 2013, 2020 when there were a hundred and three murders, and 2022, when there were a hundred and thirteen. With the murder count for 2023 at around eighty-eight, the police department credits the Leadership Intervention Unit for the number not surpassing the one hundred mark.
A home invasion in Central Farm, Cayo District ended with a Taiwanese diplomat being held up at gunpoint by a pair of armed intruders. The incident happened on Saturday when the victim of the aggravated burglary reported to police that upon hearing his dog barking, he stepped outside to investigate the issue. It was at that time that the duo pounced on him, bound him inside the residence and robbed of an assortment of personal items. Here’s more from Assistant Commissioner of Police Hilberto Romero.
“On the thirtieth day of December, police responded to an aggravated burglary Central Farm. Upon arrival they met a complainant who reported that he heard his dogs barking. He came out, at which point he was held up by two male persons armed with firearms. He was taken inside, tied up and he received injuries during the process. Thereafter, the male persons stole cash and electronic items, after which the persons fled from the area. We have no suspects at this time.”
Reporter
“Do you believe that they knew who they were going after.”
Hilberto Romero
“Yeah. He was targeted because they had information that he was there.”
At the start of the New Year’s Eve weekend, a pair of armed thieves entered a supermarket in Corozal Town where they proceeded to rob the store owner of an undisclosed sum of money from the cash register. The incident happened on Friday night at Rainbow Supermarket.
“On Friday, December twenty-eighth, there was an armed robbery at Rainbow Town Supermarket in Corozal. Two male persons came to the establishment armed with firearms, they held up the proprietor and stole an amount of cash. Thereafter, both persons fled from the area. We have several persons detained in regards to this robbery and an investigation continues.”
