Seven Years Later, Justice Delivered in Bobby Garcia Murder

More than seven years after the brutal killing of eighteen year old Bobby Garcia at the Cahal Pech archaeological site, justice finally came today inside the High Court in Belmopan. The judge handed down a fourteen year sentence to Pablo Catzim, who was just fifteen at the time of the murder, with a chance at parole after three years. He was one of two teenagers charged back in 2018, but his alleged accomplice was later acquitted.   Here’s News Five’s Britney Gordon with more on today’s sentencing.

 

Britney Gordon, Reporting

It’s been a long and painful seven‑year wait for the family of eighteen‑year‑old Bobby Garcia, but today, they finally saw justice delivered. A High Court judge handed down a fourteen‑year sentence to Pablo Catzim for Garcia’s brutal 2018 murder at the Cahal Pech archaeological site. Catzim was one of two teens initially charged, but his alleged accomplice later walked free after turning crown witness. This afternoon, attorney Bryan Neal, who represented Catzim, shared more insight into how the court arrived at today’s sentence.

 

Bryan Neal, Attorney-at-Law

“Firstly, let me start by just echoing what the defendant, the prisoner himself had said, which is that he was sorry for what he had done and he apologized to the family. He apologized to the mother and the father and entire, and the entire society for what he had done. I think the judge took that into consideration in his mitigation and imposed a sentence of fourteen years at the maximum. But under oral laws, if you commit murder when you are under the age of sixteen years, there are special provisions in the criminal code where you must be brought back. So. the judge has ordered him to be brought back in three years to see if he is eligible for release.”

 

 

Garcia was lured to his death, stabbed repeatedly in the chest, and had his face and throat slashed, acts so brutal that the attackers even photographed the murder as it happened. Justice Cumberbatch said those disturbing details weighed heavily in Catzim’s sentence, but he also noted Catzim’s progress behind bars: he finished high school with top grades and completed more than a dozen rehab programs. Catzim will return to court in three years, where a judge will decide if he’s ready to reenter society, and the seven years he already spent on remand will count toward his fourteen‑year sentence. Meanwhile, Bobby Garcia’s father says the family remains devastated.

 

 

 

Oscar Garcia Sr., Father of Deceased

“My son, Bobby, there was no second chance. He had no second chance. He will never have a second chance. Criminals, they get second chances. The maximum is fourteen years if I understood well. And after those fourteen years, he is free to integrate into society and continue his life. What about our family? What about my wife was suffered all this. We waited for seven year, four months to listen to our verdict patiently and this is what it has come down to, but it’s absolutely not what I expected.”

 

 

 

Justice Cumberbatch also pointed out that Pablo Catzim, who was only fifteen when the murder happened, grew up in a violent home, abused by his stepfather after losing his biological father, and even struggled with suicidal thoughts. He also started smoking cannabis as early as eleven. Attorney Bryan Neal says the court’s decision gives Catzim a chance to continue turning his life around and, one day, contribute positively to society when he’s released.

 

 

 

Bryan Neal

“He has shown himself to be someone who, if he is reintroduced into society, he can be a productive member of society. Has a strong family background that will cuddle him when he comes out of prison and try to rehabilitate him Everybody deserves a second chance, and this is a call to all parents to take care of your children because the victim in this was a minor. The perpetrator who has been sentenced is a minor. And a lot of our children are going the wrong way. So this is a wake up call to people in this society. Take care of your children and love them.”

 

Bobby Garcia was just days away from celebrating his nineteenth birthday when his life was cut short. Friends remember him as a quiet kid who loved music, but those closest to him say he was full of energy, full of dreams, and ready to take on the world.

 

 

 

 

Oscar Garcia Sr.

“ Very energetic very optimistic. He was looking forward to his junior. He had just started junior college in September, October, and he was a business student. He loved music like all teenagers. He had his own dreams of, that he wanted to fulfill.”

 

 

 

Bobby’s family is urging Belizeans to raise their children with more care and guidance, hoping that fewer families will ever have to endure the pain of losing a loved one far too soon. Britney Gordon for News Five.