Accused pirates off the hook

Three men accused of various crimes in a case of piracy at sea have been cleared of all charges after the prosecution decided to throw in the towel. Lincoln “Kilo Boy” Allen, Leonardo Casanova, and Jairu Sedacey walked out of Belize City Magistrate’s Court free men, after charges of attempted murder, grievous harm, use of deadly means of harm, and robbery were withdrawn. The charges arose out of two incidents in June of last year when Allen, Cassanova, and Sedacey were accused of holding up two boats, one near Tobacco Caye and the other near Rendezvous Caye. In the first incident, Raymond Johnston told authorities that on June twenty-first, 2004, three men in a skiff forced him off his boat, The Yanise, at gunpoint. Johnston said the robbers also stole his catch of seafood valued at over eight thousand dollars. The other incident took place on June twenty-ninth at Rendezvous Caye during which another man, Julian Ricalde was shot. On the same day, another Sarteneja fisherman, Juan Tepaz, told police that he was accosted by six masked men who ordered him and his crew off their boat, forcing them to jump into the sea. The robbers then made off with the vessel. News Five understands that the primary reason for the prosecution’s withdrawal of the charges is that a key witness who was expected to testify against the men refused to cooperate with the prosecution. In addition to setting the men free, Magistrate Earl Jones also ordered that a boat and other items that were taken away from “Kilo Boy”, be returned to him. In related news, while the more serious charges were withdrawn, Casanova pled guilty to a charge of handling stolen goods, namely two eighteen-gallon containers belonging to Ricalde. He was fined two hundred and fifty dollars and ordered to pay by the end of July, or in default spend three months in prison.