Ex of G.S.U.’s Vidal claims child was severely beaten
Estelita Romero is a mother of three and the former common law wife of Marco Vidal, the commander of the dreaded Gang Suppression Unit. The couple has separated for some time and the children live with Vidal and his wife, Cheryl-Lynn, who is also the Director of Public Prosecutions. Romero came to our studios on Thursday claiming that her ex beat her children. The abuse, she alleges, happened about a month ago and she filed a report after she learnt from her seven year old daughter that she had been severely beaten by her father. Romero says she has come forward to the media because she is being given the run around by the police and she brought pictures of the injuries her daughter sustained. According to Romero, a doctor who examined the young girl classified the injuries as harm on the medico legal form. She says she wants justice and is concerned about her children.
Estelita Romero, Alleges ex common-law physically abused children
Estelita Romero
“For eight years I was the common law of Mr. Mark Vidal. And we have three children—a ten year old, a nine year old, and a seven year old girl. We’ve been separated for some years now. From the beginning of the separation, the children were living with me then he took them away from me. When we separated, Vidal told me that I could stay in the house for the first month or so because we were renting. Then I would have to find a way to pay my own bills because he would not do it. So, because of that I had no job. I had to look for a job leaving my children in the care of my mother. For the time beign that they were with my mother, I was off and on visiting with them; helping my mother financially and he was too. Then I applied for custody and so did he. Then he came up to me and spoke to me and asked me not to show up to the next hearing because it was foolish for us to be fighting over them. So I accepted that. We did not sign anything. I did not show up for the hearing and neither did he. And it worked out for the beginning and the children were living with me. After that, he just came and took them away without saying the reasons why. And since then he took them to live with him and his new wife. And the children constantly complain to me about things they are going through at home—verbal, you know; that they always get lashings, and punishments.
Marco Vidal
Sometimes they would be locked up for a whole day or for months without having anywhere to go or play. It’s not the first time my daughter had come home with a bruise on her legs or anywhere on her body. But this time the bruise was that big that I decided to report the matter to the police. I went to the police station on the twenty seventh. And since then nothing has been done. The police hasn’t been giving me any feedback. I have been visiting them and trying to find out what is happening and they are not saying anything. It seems to me that they aren’t going to do anything either. Even bring up to me saying that there are cases that are even bigger and that the lashing my daughter got was justifiable of a disciplinary actions that her father took against her. And the reason I come to the media is that I feel justice is not being made for me or my child. So I think that something needs to get done. And if this is what I have to do, I will do it because what is my concern are my children.”
Romero, who now has custody of the children, says she has not been able to get their clothing from her ex’s home. She said she would also take her story to the Ombudsman’s office. On Thursday evening, we asked Vidal for a comment, but he has not yet responded to the claims made by Romero.
The worst thing possible for democracy is when police are “above the law.”
We must investigate with impartial investigators, follow the evidence, and let the chips fall where they may.
that’s why he do stupid thing’s
get to your door 4am…
he is untouchable, look who is his wife, this guy feels like he runs above the law but every dog has his day what goes around comes around and even harder. we complain about child abuse to police but look who is in the center of this issue the head of the police so what do we expect?
Mein….what type of two peope are we talking about here. Just imagine abusing such a precious little blessing. Just the thought bring tears. He’s abusing his children just as he does to the thugs. Mein… how embarrassing. How cold. She is your child and a baby. Please get on this asap and do the RIGHT THING. Sad that Chryl-Lynn would just sit, close her eyes and be extremely quit at such a behaviour. Mine girl….you might be next. There are other ways to discipline a child.
Why havn’t the PM denounce this type of behavior by Mr Vidal?Apparently You’re better off abusing someone in Belize than squatting.How can these people go to the criminal elements and tell them to do the right thing when they are a part of the equation?
Do not save the rod and spoil the child , or shame will come to you….
A parent was locked up for the same thing in PG. The doctor characterize the bruise as harm; so why is vidal not yet charged. Anybody would already been thrown and dragged to jail.
Investigate this matter, if the allege accusation is found to be true…THEY should be FIRED & LOCKED UP IN JAIL…..Today is Father’s Day, I know Mr. Vidal is not having a good one & he deserves that!!!
Hey i dont really like these comment i know Mr. vidal should’nt have beaten the girl like that but there is 2 parts to the story and we are all hearing one the bible said if you spear the rod you spoil the child we need to hear the 2 sides of the story and then we can comment
Come on Vidal or G.S.U defenders you have been putting him high after the raid he did at La Cabana owners home,the Menjivars.Now you can say what goes around comes around.Who is supposed to be the Hero,Vidal who abuses his own children,or Mike who did everything to save his three little ones?until when the wrong person be in jail? Investigate before you talk! I guess from what we have seen and unfolded so far MR.MENJIVAR HAS PROVEN TO NOT ONLY BE A BELIZEAN HERO BUT ALSO THE ONE PERSON THAT MOST DESERVES THE AWARD OF #1 DAD OF THE YEAR 2011!!!!!!!!since he is still paying for saving his family.
There is nothing that that little girl couldve done to warrant the severe lashing she received from that “father.” The man is trained senior policeman so he must know of other ways of disciplining. That his wife, the DPP uses the bible to justify his actions, fully explains why her office is so incompetent..Evidence is abundance of nolle pros. Send she back to Caroni!
It is a dam disgrace that this man would brutalize his own flesh and blood this way for goodness sake she is a 7 year old baby! God help us all if we have a man in a high place that would brutalize his own baby in such a horrible manner.
What on earth could a 7 year old child do to have warranted such a severe beating from that “father?’
What on Earth could a 7 year old child do to warrant that type of punishment? Apparently she couldnt even sit well in class. If these sort of actions continue to be perpetrated by Police, they will lose all moral authority and their jobs will become a hundred times harder. The DPP will find that out too.
Menjivar is not a hero. He is a drug dealer and all of Belmopan and some other places know it. Vidal is not at all justified in his recent parental decisions/actions either but lets not confuse the ham with the hammer!
With 25 yrs. of experience working in child welfare in the USA, I have never seen or heard anything like this before, no one is above the law when it comes to allegation of child abuse. The Police or the DPP’s office are not the ones who should make the decision as to which, who and what cases are to be investigated, this should be decided by medical professionals, child welfare officials, school teachers, social workers, Psychologist,and mental health professional coupled with many significant others. The question is not whether Mr. Vidal administer corporal punishment or the not, and how severely? the facts are the sole determinant. When there are scars, bruises, etc, etc, these are positive signs of child abuse or neglect to report trauma to the appropriate officials. By all means there should be an investigation and the alleged perpetrators must be held responsible and charged for the alleged abuses. Family court and the justice system should decide who is guilty and what punishment should be meted out to them. Child abuse is is a very serious matter and not even public opinion should play a role in determining end results.
………………. A child should never have to endure beatings and that child should never be allowed near him again as after all this exposure he will b angey and take out his anger on her.
Hey, that ‘spare the rod and spoil the child’ phrase is NOT in the bible. It came from a poem written by Samuel Butler in 1664. If anyone disagrees, then tell me the book, chapter and verse in the bible that it comes from. It would make for interesting reading.
When family court grants custody of a child to the father rather than the mom…. it rings a bell to me… in most cases the children are allowed to be under maternal or joint custody…. if that didnt happen I question myself why this woman lost custody of the child????? What strong reasons the court had NOT TO GIVE CUSTODY TO THE MOTHER…. when the law is mostly in favour of the mothers…. pension for both child and mother….
Hope Iam wrong but it seems like what shakespeare said.. “hell hath had known no fury… than the wrath of a jealous woman…”
SOME women know no boundaries when they want to get even with their former partners…. using their own children is fastly becoming the common weapon of choice…. given the sociocultural situation in Belize in terms of “child abuse”
@ roska…..And PICTURES DON’T LIE……THEY TELL A STORY!!!!…..WE ALL CLEARLY saw the BRUISES ON the child!!!!
roska shut the !@#$ up..you sound so stupid!!!!!…. The damn point here is that the child was lashed severely…and no child deserve to be punish so harshly…there are many ways to punish a child without such measurement.. no one is concern why or who have custody…the main thing is this child was lashed till her skin was purple… and because here high profile father and stepmother is involve that will be left as nothing happen…a child has the right to be protected and love… so I say take his @$$ to court!!!
@ wisdom –
Proverbs 13:24
Whoever spare the rod hates his children, but the one who loves his children is carefully to discipline them.
Proverbs 23:13-14
Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.
Punish them with the rod, and save them from death.
The punishment was harsh for her being only seven….. and a girl at that.
I wonder if they ever lash hers the way he hit his other children. She should be ashame of being a mom and let stuff like that happen but one of these fine days when things get sour and udp lose and government change she get let go from being dpp and her husband get remove and there should be another step dad for her then i want that step dad to hit her child and she take in complain and they do her the same she will feel how it feel every dog has there own day. You two won’t be high forever. but god is not sleeping we shall see later on.God bless that little baby.
at this point what matters is the action of Mr. Vidal that he made, abusing the 7yr old daughter, no matter if he is the Law he have to be charge for his action,to that extend to mercy for you I wish I would b your ex wife. I defend my child no matter what.And you Mrs Estelita Romero it time to fight for the custody of your child if your really love your children, keep working hard and mantain your kids don’t depend on your ex. seems that you have excuses for giving your kids to their dad, you have fault too, this are the consequences for the wrong decision you made.
YOU GUYS NEED TO HEAR THE TWO SIDE OF THE STORY, THIS WOMAN ESTELITA ROMERO,
WORK DOWN SOUTH, WHY YOU THINK SHE WENT TO WORK SO FAR FROM HER CHILDREN??
IF YOU GUYS WOULD ONLY KNOW WHAT IS HER TRADE FOR MONEY.
SHE WAS OFFERED TO STAY HOME AND TAKE CARE OF THE CHILDREN BUT SHE REFUSED AND DECIDED SHE WILL WORK DOWN SOUTH DOING YOU KNOW WHAT.
A LOT OF PEOPLE DON’T KNOW HOW MUCH SHE ABUSED HER KIDS OUT OF FUSTRATION TOO,
IT SUCH A PITY IT ALL HAPPEN LIKE THIS, BOTH OF THEM ARE TO BLAME, SHE AND VIDAL
Hey I am no fan of the American way of life, but I’v seen in the US that e ven the President brought before a comission of inquiry ( Clinton-Lewinsky case) today the Head of IMF , Dominique Srauss-Kahn is arrested for a sexual assalut case. my point is that in the uS the law seems to apply to everyone equally despite your status. in Belize that is not the case, I dare anyone to dispute this with specific cases in belize…..
LARGE N SEXY, THERE IS NO NEED TO KNOW TWO SIDES OF THE STORY HERE, THERE ARE POSITIVE SIGNS OF CHILD ABUSE, THATS ENOUGH EVIDENCE. NO MATTER WHAT LIFE STYLE ANYONE IS LIVING SHOULD NOT NEGATE AN APPROPRIATE INVESTIGATION. WITH THE ARREST OF THE ALLEGED PERPETRATORS COUPLED WITH IMMEDIATE REMOVAL OF THE CHILD FROM THE ALLEGED ENVIRONMENT OFABUSE. THE CHILD IS AN INNOCENT VICTIM AND CERTAINLY SHOULD NOT REMAIN WITH THE VIDALS.
Where is the Social Service department?Furthermore why havn’t this issue been denounced by someone from the GOB.Do we need to have someone squatt on Vidal’s land for this issue to get the attention that was given to the squatters?Last but not least hearing both sides of this story won’t change the fact that this child was abused by her father.Let’s stop condoning stupidity my Belizean people.Maybe Mr Vidal’s action shouldn’t even be surpring to us.Don’t you all remember what Mr Vidal and his crew did to those dogs a couple weeks ago in Belmopan?
@ roska…shut the hell up caz seriously you don’t know what the @#$% you are talking about, as for LARGE & SEXY nobody is interesting in what Estelita’s line of employment is, that fact is that her child was badly beaten while under the “care” of her father. Hmmmm typical Belizean…always interested in GOSSIPS, RUMORS, and as you all always say “yeriso”. instead of sticking to the FACTS. Which is again a child was abuse severely by the hands of her very own father. Mr. Vidal I can see you using excessive force whilst doing you job in trying to get rid of the poisons (thugs & low life) that are plaguing the streets of Belize, but this is just a baby who so happens to be your very own flesh & blood, how could you have come to this????? As for your wife who tries to quote the bible…..girrrrrrrlllllllll you saying some stupid s^&% like that…I can see why there are far less convictions in the courts under your watch.
Interesting how our DPP NEVER addressed the media explaining those MULTIPLE NOLLE PROS. I remember her telling the media that she doesn’t have to explain her lousy 7% conviction rate, just because the General Public’s upset. However, she jumped at the opportunity to defend her child abuser husband. You should’ve remained silent, Mrs Vidal because now you look like an accomplice!
Roska….
You probably know more about this case than what has been presented. Given the information in the interview, I get the impression that the custody hearing never went through and both parents had an amicable settlement. Vidal chose to take the children and unfortunately she did not pursue the matter at that juncture…she apparently had financial limitations….I can identify with that, especially if I believe my children are with a parent who will give the same level of care I give until such time that I can financially cope.
The root of this matter is that…even if she is a woman scorned…he was the one that gave her amunition to fuel her cause….to the detriment of a 7 year old child….he therefore, should be face the full extent of the law. I certainly cannot judge him, that is the job of a magistrate and it is very unfair for his own wife, who apparently had a stake in the circumstances, to be judge and jury. It is double unfair for there to be no reprecussion for either Vidal in the face of such obvious miscarriage of justice.
If he is innocent then it should come out in a court case…if that is the case he will be vindicated…but until then, there is a process that needs to be followed…let that process happen because if it were you in such a situation….you would have been writing your comments from Kolbe.
Spare the rod and spoil the child is one thing and abuse is another! Too many Belizeans take this verse and make and excuse to brutalize their children. This is crap and should be stopped!
@ roska seriously SHUT UP …court is not always fair and I think we all know this .Just the fact that Estelita is not a government big shot should let you know why she doesn’t have custody of her children.
@large and sexy who do you think you are to try to discriminate this woman line of employment honestly no one cares.
The only focus and concern here is that a 7 yr old child has been abuse physically and mentally and even maybe verbally and nothing is being done.The sad thing also is that Vidal’s wife saw this and did nothing to stop it from happening and God knows if this was the only time he did this.
To my point of view even Vidal’s wife should be charged for accomplice…..
Elgin you have a point. The Human Service Dept’s Chief was on the squatters ‘Ground Zero’ when she learned that there were children involved in that whole mess. Such hypocrisy is what tears apart the moral fabric of this country!
I am a father with older children than this little girl and I believe in discipline because I know that it is very important in the home. Many parents in Belize fail to discipline their children that is why we have too much delinquency in Belize.
However, Mr. Vidal’s action was not discipline; it is an extension of the brutality he and others normally do to people. Because the DPP is one of the culprits in this case, Mr. Vidal cannot be prosecuted. The DPP will not order the prosecution of her husband. They are like many others in Belmopan who put themselves above their laws. This very same DPP has imprisoned many people without evidence so the convictions are very few. At the same time she declared some murder cases “Self Defense” and did not bother to get the murderers arrested because they are all interconnected.
The laws only work against us who don’t have connections in Belmopan. If we want justice upon certain people, we have to find another way to get it.
Many STUPID WOMEN LIKE THE DPP MRS. VIDAL likes to encourage their husbands in abusing the children of the ex because they hate the fact that their husband actually had a family before them. But don’t worry Mrs. Vidal because what goes around comes around. AND GOD DOES NOT SLEEP. No matter what the child did he did not have the right to abuse her. SOCIAL SERVICES NEEDS TO GET INVOLVE. ABUSE OF A CHILD IS ABUSE NO MATTER WHO DOES IT. Too many of our children are being abused by the PEOPLE who are suppose to be protecting them. ARREST THAT @@$$HOLE AND CHARGE HIM.
You all think that you know it all maggots. Shut up !@#$%^& and horses. Shouldn’t be surprised why Belize is in such deep $#!%. YOu animals don’t think correction is needed with children. You think you love your animals when you don’t discipline them. You are wrong if you think so.
Not long ago I was talking to someone about ” how is the relationship of these men that work for GSU with their wife and kids…the things they have been reported doing is so brutal”…said so said done
Clifford you sound like a FOOLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!……There is a BIGGGGG difference between DISCIPLINE & ABUSE…….. BELIZE IS IN SUCH @#$% FROM ADAPTING TO THE LIFESTYLES, CORUPTION, GREED, & THE EVILS OF TODAY’S MODERN WORLD…..And by the way, when YOU LOOK in the mirror, that is where you will see the MAGGOT & ANIMAL!!!
roska –
LARGE AND SEXY –
Your comments leave me speechless, almost. Condoning the brutalization of a young child, FOR WHATEVER REASON, is particularly despicable, deplorable, and disgusting. SHAME ON YOU!
Mr. Marcos Vidal should do what’s right and proper and turn himself in. If some other adult was present when this child was being physically, and undoubtedly verbally and mentally abused and stood by and did nothing then they too should do what’s right and proper and turn themselves in. To defend their actions would seriously put into question the integrity and functionality of their moral compass‘, if, indeed they even have one!
There’s a fine line between punishment and physical abuse. A line has been clearly crossed here and it isn’t the first time a line has been crossed since this thug started making news. I’m really beginning to get a sense that Marcos Vidal is a lot more sinister than what’s been alleged to date. I’m not a gambling man but I would bet that this guy harbours some horrific secrets. I would also bet that those close to Marcos Vidal have the odd nagging suspicion about this guy. That, of course, would go right to the top levels of Government.
Perhaps Prime Minister Dean Barrow would see fit to do the honourable thing and make a statement denouncing and castigating those that would do grievous harm to a defenceless child. It would be the only appropriate response! Silence on this issue would be clearly inappropriate and I might add, more than a tad disturbing! After all, who signs Marcos Vidal’s paycheque?
Clifford –
You have some serious mental issues that could pose a very real risk to life and limb of those around you if not that of yourself. You need to isolate yourself from the rest of humanity and you should seriously consider removing yourself from the gene pool! Do you even know what’s being discussed here? Your comments are nothing but stinking, maggot infested trash talk but I’ll bet that you’re quite proud of your comments never-the-less. SHAME ON YOU TOO!
There is NO defence for child abuse! Child punishment, now that’s something completely different. To confuse the two is unconscionable!
Roska, you have a point. Vidal may be all the things he has been called including an abuser but we have seen the extent to which men & women have gone to get even with exes. Years ago I asked a family member about her crippled hand which had been that way since childhood. She started crying when I questioned whether or not the story we grew up believing was true. It was not, her mother left her scarred physically & mentally for life by beating her & forcing her to lie. Why? Because no matter how vicious her Mom was, her mother had talked her into believing that living with a step mom or other family member would have been worse.
@ EMS, the DPS in the US has disproportionately removed children of color from their homes because of misinformation & while we all appreciate the fact that they may be doing their job, they are often misused by people with grudges. Being a parent is a tough job but being a stepparent is often thankless & treacherous when our spouses exes can drag our behind through the mud & deplete our bank accounts when we have to defend ourselves against trumped up charges.
Cheryl Lynn should excuse herself, let BQ or someone else handle this case & allow Social Services to do a thorough investigation.