2025-06-12 - Greater Belize Media

Calls for Accountability Grow After Youth & Sports Audit

Is there finally some movement on the long-awaited audit into the Ministry of Youth and Sports? Well, sources tell News Five that the Audit Department has wrapped up its investigation, but, so far, the final report hasn’t been made public. For years, the unions have been calling for a deep dive into the operations of the National Sports Council and the Department of Youth Services, especially over the past five years. And now, it seems that the audit may be complete. Today, we asked Minister Anthony Mahler about what’s been uncovered so far. His response? There’s a clear need for stronger checks and balances and a higher level of accountability.

Anthony Mahler, Minister of Youth and Sports

“That we need to put in some more of the checks and balances which we have been doing, that there has to be a higher level of accountability which we will do and that we need to show the nation that we will do things differently under Minister Daly and I’s leadership.”

Paul Lopez

“How much of that audit speaks to wastage within the ministry of youth and national sports council?”

Anthony Mahler

“Well it does not speak about wastage. It speaks about proper checks and balances and proper accountability for certain initiatives.”

Paul Lopez

“Checks and balances in terms of what?”

Anthony Mahler

“For example when you disburse monies in out district committees then there has to be accountability for it. When there is no accountability for the renting of facilities, that should come into a consolidated fund. That did not happen. These are some of the things we are talking about, relatively minor. We are talking about not a great deal of money after salaries anyhow. It is not this rampant corruption that people want to talk about. We are just in this environment where they want to paint all politician as corrupt. Throughout history that has happened. So, as politicians we have to take our lumps and deal with the environment we are operating in.”

Paul Lopez

“But in terms of does money not being wholly accounted for, one would imagine it impacted the development and investments in youth and sports under the former minister?”

Anthony Mahler

“Not really, because nobody pays much for any of these facilities. You are talking about a small amount of money. It is just how things are managed.”

Paul Lopez

“Is anyone to be held accountable for the findings there.”

Anthony Mahler

“We have not gotten there yet. We are still going through all the information, and we will see.”

“Road Pirates” Increasing Pressure on Belizean Car Dealers

Buying a car in the U.S. and driving it down to Belize might sound like a smart way to save money, but for some vehicle importers, that journey is becoming more dangerous than ever. While the cost savings can be tempting, the road through Mexico is increasingly risky. One local car dealer, who asked to remain anonymous, told us he recently witnessed a friend being robbed while transporting a vehicle. He described the trip as a grueling experience, one where ‘road pirates,’ from organized criminals to opportunistic thieves, are turning what used to be a routine drive into a high-stakes gamble. Tonight, we take a closer look at the growing threats facing Belizean car dealers and ask: is the savings really worth the risk?

On the Phone: Car Dealer

“Again, when you jump across the border, that is where the better part of the action happens and it does not matter if its morning, noon or night. The risks involved in getting from point A to B, point A, the Los Indios Border to Corozal border. It is really a cat and mouse game. On Monday we were coming in a convoy, five six of us, the guy right in front of us, we were going at a nice speed, sixty, seventy, and the guys, I want to say “road pirates”, they are waiting for us, from the time we left the border we are targeted.”

Paul Lopez

“And that individual was robbed?”

On the Phone: Car Dealer

“Yup, right in front of me. And if I had stopped I would have gotten robbed too.”

Paul Lopez

“How do these robberies play out?”

On the Phone: Car Dealer

“The tactics they use, you have to be careful where you stop. Late last year I got spikes thrown in front of me. It was only God that got me through that. I passed through those spikes. And then, what happens, there are two set of robbers, the cartels that will pull up in front of you and you have to stop. No work around, you have to stop. Then the second one is the local thieves. They try similar tactics. They are the one that is the most dangerous. They will kill you for a quarter. So they will tell pull up beside you and tell you to stop and if you are in a bigger vehicle you can take the risk and outrun them. But majority of them it doesn’t make sense, because most of us are towing and it becomes difficult to maneuver the vehicle while towing.”

Car Dealer Fined After Vanishing with Buyer’s Cash

A Belize City car dealer is in hot water tonight, accused of taking thousands of dollars from a customer and never delivering the vehicle she paid for. Thirty-one-year-old Jordan Gerald Morey appeared in court this afternoon, charged with obtaining property by deception. The allegations? Morey reportedly took six thousand, seven hundred dollars from Natesha Flores between September and December last year, promising to import a Mazda from the U.S. But the car never showed up, and neither did Morey, according to Flores, who says he vanished after months of excuses. In court, Morey pleaded guilty, citing personal hardship, including the recent death of his mother. Despite his plea, the magistrate noted a troubling pattern, this isn’t his first run-in with the law for similar offenses. He was fined two thousand, five hundred dollars and given until August twenty-ninth to pay up or face a year behind bars.

Locked In, Fed Up: Prison Officers Stage Walkout

It was anything but business as usual at the Belize Central Prison on Wednesday, as eleven prison officers walked off the job. Their reason? Poor working conditions. These wardens, employed by the Kolbe Foundation, say they’ve had enough—raising concerns about everything from shared sleeping spaces to the lack of personal lockers. Now, they’re part of a two hundred-strong workforce, living in newly renovated barracks, but they say the upgrades don’t go far enough. Some even refused to sleep on top bunks. Their demands might sound simple, but prison CEO Virgilio Murillo isn’t convinced, they’re “unreasonable,” he told News Five in a phone interview earlier today. So, what’s really going on behind the prison walls?

On the Phone: Virgilio Murillo, CEO, Kolbe Foundation

“We just upgraded the officers’ barracks because we camp our prison officers who work shifts. They work a seven days on/seven days off shift and we normally camp them, we feed them, and everything. And it so happened that we recently renovated the barracks. There’s a capacity of roughly forty bunk beds and eighty-three lockers. It so happens that because we have over two hundred prison guards, each one of them apparently wants to have their own lockers and that is highly impractical. Whether they are at the prison or not, they just want a locker assigned to them and remain locked with whatever personal items they may have in their while they are on their shift off, which is seven days. It’s just not practical. Similarly, they did not want to sleep on the top bunks. They all want an individual bed because they all want to be on the ground. So I think those were very unreasonable requests. Obviously, they were not happy about that and they got disgruntled. They walked off the job because they felt that their request was not being given. The sad thing is that the majority of them, over eighty percent of them were recently hired, so their tenure of service is very minimal. My senior staff, they are very pleased. They are pretty much on the job right now, getting the job done.”

Isani Cayetano

“Just for the record, them walking off yesterday simply means that they have essentially terminated their services with the Kolbe Foundation.”

Virgilio Murillo

“That would be my interpretation of it, that’s being defiant. They refuse to understand that we’re just not able to provide each and every prison officer with a locker. For me, it’s just so hard in an environment like this and I always tell people, to work in a prison you have to be cut out of a different material and not everybody can make it in this area because it’s a tough place to work.”

Injured but Guilty: Los Lagos Man Admits to Wounding Amid Assault Claim

A Los Lagos man says he was the one attacked but still ended up pleading guilty in court today. Forty-year-old Charles Egbert West appeared before Magistrate Ludlow Black, charged with wounding a man during what he claims was a brutal assault on him by a group of young men. West, who showed visible injuries including a deep head wound and stitched-up arm, told the court he was in too much pain to stay in custody and just wanted to go to the hospital. Despite insisting he was the victim, he pleaded guilty, saying, “Dah they chop me up.” The magistrate noted West’s criminal history, including a previous conviction for a violent offense, and fined him three hundred, giving him until July thirty first to pay or face three months in prison. Outside court, West said the attack was fueled by jealousy and tension in the community, but despite his claims, he’s now on the record for another violent offense.

City Council and Anthony Mahler Opens Youth Hub

It was a proud moment today for the Belize City Council and the Pickstock community, as they officially cut the ribbon on a space that’s already been making a difference. After three years of quietly serving the neighborhood, the Hope Resource Center now boasts a brand-new, fully furnished Youth Hub, thanks to a recent investment by the Council and Area Representative Anthony Mahler. The upgraded facility is all about empowering young people and supporting the community. Our team was there for the official opening, here’s more from that event.

Bernard Wagner, Mayor, Belize City

“This is opened from one until seven. And then on Saturday from nine until two. We have a house tutor that assist the kids with home work, mentoring, if you may want to write a resume together. So it serving school and out school. For this facility it is about twenty. At the downtown city hall it is approximately fifty, any student at any level and it is a strategic area given that it serves Lake I, Pickstock, we though that this is strategic area. But we want to expand our broader pan of driving youth development and provide he spaces they can learn in a nice environment.”

Paul Lopez

“Where did funding come from?”

Bernard Wagner

“It came from the Belize City Council. We passed that through our caucus. But it is a partnership with the Change Agents who manage the Hope Center and we facilitated the rehabilitation of the space, ensuring you can see a perimeter fence. We had to demolish the existing bathroom, put in a new bathroom, rehabilitation on the roof and then we had to purchase the computers, the most significant cost in acquiring computers. It ran us about forty thousand to purchase the computers. Those are desktop computers.”

Anthony Mahler, Area Representative, Pickstock

“I truly believe that if a large portion of the people who graduate from primary school don’t graduate from high school then to compete as a nation in this digital age we will struggle. I truly believe that when many of the kids get home they don’t have the necessary support at home. So I think after school programs like this will definitely help our young people in terms of staying in school and advancing in their education. Education does not guarantee anything but it is a crucial part for us to be able to compete as human being. We are doing a full assessment of the country and we will have a discussion on how much it will cost to roll out these in strategic locations. It has to be feasible. This is a social program. So whatever money comes to support it we will ensure it is there.”

NTUCB Denounces ‘Union Busting’ and ‘Intimidation’ of Labour Leaders

The National Trade Union Congress of Belize (NTUCB) has issued a strong public statement condemning what it describes as “acts of union busting, intimidation, and targeted campaigns” against union leaders and members.

According to the NTUCB, these actions are a direct assault on workers’ constitutional rights, particularly the right to freedom of association, and undermine the democratic values that uphold labour justice in Belize.

“The right to unionise is protected under the Constitution of Belize and affirmed by our national labour laws,” the NTUCB pointed out.

It added that union representatives are legally entitled to “speak, organise, and advocate on behalf of their members without fear of reprisal.”

The NTUCB also warned that “any form of coercion, intimidation, or punitive action taken against union leaders constitutes union busting and will be met with resistance.”

The union umbrella body called for an immediate end to all activities that could be interpreted as anti-unionism and reaffirmed its “full and unwavering support” for all affiliate unions and their leadership.

Police Hunt for Ex-Boyfriend Who Set Woman’s Home on Fire Twice

The woman’s house on Flamboyant Street was deliberately set on fire twice, first on Tuesday night and again early Wednesday morning, in what police suspect is a case of domestic-related arson.

According to the homeowner, the incident stems from a recent breakup between her daughter and the accused. The woman said the man “took it hard” and returned to their home around 10:00 p.m. Tuesday night, where he reportedly turned on all the stove burners and set the couch on fire. The family managed to extinguish the blaze before it spread.

However, the man allegedly returned again around 4:00 Wednesday morning. This time, he lit a curtain on fire through an open window from outside the house. The fire was again put out, but not before causing damage to the interior.

Police have been notified and are currently searching for the suspect.

Rotary Club’s Beautification Project Vandalised

The Belmopan City Council is strongly condemning a recent act of vandalism that defaced a beautification project carried out by the Rotary Club of Belmopan.

According to the council, the club had invested time, resources, and effort into enhancing the city’s public spaces, aiming to uplift the community for both residents and visitors. The club’s work was destroyed in what officials are calling a senseless and unacceptable act.

“Vandalism is not just damage to property — it is a direct attack on the progress we are building together,” the mayor stated.

City officials said that such actions disrespect the volunteers and civic groups who work to improve Belmopan and diminish the collective pride in a cleaner, more welcoming city.

“Together, we stand against vandalism. Together, we build a better Belmopan.”

Belize and Taiwan Launch Phase 2 of Micro-Entrepreneurs Project

Belize and Taiwan celebrated a key milestone in their joint efforts to promote economic empowerment and resilience among underserved communities with the official launch of Phase 2 of the Increasing Economic Power for Micro-Entrepreneurs Project.

Spearheaded by the Ministry of Human Development, Family Support, and Gender Affairs in collaboration with the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund (Taiwan ICDF), the initiative supports small-scale entrepreneurs, particularly women, by providing business training, mentorship, and startup support.

“This project is about more than income,” said Minister Thea Garcia-Ramirez in her address. “It’s about independence, dignity, and unlocking the potential that already exists within our people.”

Fifty-two participants graduated from Phase 1 and received certificates in recognition of their achievements.

With Phase 2 now underway, the project aims to expand its reach across additional districts and strengthen its offerings through enhanced training and more robust services for aspiring entrepreneurs.