Hilux Raffle Hype Fizzles Out: Fundraiser Stalls Before the Finish Line

What started as a flashy fundraiser, complete with big promises and a brand‑new Toyota Hilux up for grabs, was supposed to rally the community behind the charitable work of the Sub Umbra Floreo Lions Club. But months after all the excitement and promotion, that highly anticipated raffle has quietly been canceled. Now, people are asking what went wrong, how much money was collected, and what happens to those who already bought their tickets. Tonight, we delve into a project that launched with plenty of optimism but never made it to the finish line. News Five’s Paul Lopez takes a closer look.

 

Paul Lopez, Reporting

It was a fundraiser that looked flawless on paper, right down to the brand‑new vehicle waiting to be raffled off. But despite all the planning and promotion, the big giveaway never happened.

 

Paul Lopez

“It is a brand new 2026 Toyota Hilux, so one lucky winner will be driving into 2026 with a 2026 Toyota Hilux.”

 

The Sub Umbra Floreo Lions Club had it all planned months before two young, passionate members appeared on Open Your Eyes in August to promote the initiative. A May thirteenth proposal set out the plans. It was pitched as a partnership between the club and Belize Diesel and Equipment, an effort to raise money for the club’s work across Belize, with a brand‑new vehicle as the grand prize. The ticket price, one hundred dollars with a total of one thousand, two hundred tickets available for sale. The club hoped to bring in a total of one hundred and twenty thousand dollars from ticket sales.

 

Tevin Arthurs, Chairman, Childhood Cancer Committee (File: August 21^st, 2025)

“You can contact any of us or you can go on the Facebook website and you can just message and you will get a reply and we will go from there.”

 

What began as a straightforward arrangement quickly unraveled behind the scenes. On May twenty‑ninth, the club’s president, Indira Mejia, reached out to Belize Diesel and Equipment to nail down the details they had discussed, everything from a twenty‑thousand‑dollar down payment to a tentative drawing date, even plans to keep the vehicle on bond to cut insurance costs. Then, on June nineteenth, Belize Diesel issued a pro forma invoice for a 2025 Platinum Pearl White Toyota Hilux valued at seventy thousand dollars. But that’s where the paperwork ended. A spokesperson for Belize Diesel told News Five today that the club never followed through on the purchase. And an email dated March sixth, 2026, from the company’s own sales manager, confirms that the deal simply stalled out. The manager wrote, quote, “No Vehicle was purchased from Belize Diesel and Equipment Company Limited under that name”.

 

Tevin Arthurs

“The raffle will take place at our gala, December thirty-first at the Grand Resort.”

 

But the raffle did not take place on the night of the Gala. Instead, the Lion’s Club President, Indira Mejia requested permission from the Gaming and Lotteries Operating Officer to extend the drawing date.  The Committee responded favorably and granted permission for the 2026 Toyota Hilux Pickup Fundraiser Raffle to be held on March seventh, 2026. Well, March seventh passed and the raffle still did not take place. Today News Five confirmed with the Gaming and Lotteries Commission that the Lion’s Club president sought approval to cancel the raffle.

 

Lewin Samuels, Secretary, Lotteries Committee

“The committee has written her and told her you need to request permission and tell us how much tickets were printed, how much tickets were sold, the amount of unsold tickets, who are your patrons who sold tickets, the contact for these person. You need to put a notice that the raffle was canceled. I get a response from her today that based on what the committee position is, she will comply fully, full refund will be given, one hundred percent, within thirty days. All refunds will be processed and paid within thirty days.”

 

 Paul Lopez

“How frequent do cancelations happen?”

 

Lewin Samuels

“Very few, very, very few.”

 

Ticket holders and members of the public wait for clarity, while the Lions Club faces growing pressure to explain what led to the cancellation and how it intends to make things right. Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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