Police Foil Planned Robbery in Ladyville, Find Powerful Firearm

A conspiracy to rob a business in Ladyville, Belize District has been thwarted and a very powerful submachine gun was recovered in the process. Police pursued fugitives in a high speed chase along the Phillip Goldson Highway, sometime after ten o’clock on Monday night, but they were able to escape the long arms of the law. The would-be robbers sped away in a dark colored vehicle believed to be a Hyundai Santa Fe.  Police say mobile units posted along the stretch of road near the Burrell Boom junction observed a suspicious vehicle heading towards Ladyville.  Both teams were immediately activated and gave chase to the fleeing vehicle.  During the hunt, the occupants hurled a black bag into the nearby bushes.  Inside the knapsack was a rusty hand-held weapon with an extended magazine containing thirty, live, nine millimeter rounds.  According to Senior Superintendent Edward Broaster, further intelligence suggests that the occupants of the mid-size SUV were heading to a specific location in Ladyville to stash the firearm ahead of a major heist planned for later this week.

Edward Broaster

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster, Commander, Rural Eastern Division

“Our highway patrol, Rural Rapid Response engaged a vehicle that was coming into the Ladyville area via Burrell Boom junction and upon spotting our highway patrol it attempted to make its escape towards Sand Hill Village.  Our highway patrol pursued the vehicle and some minutes later a bag was thrown from the vehicle and our highway patrol stopped and let one of our Rural Rapid Response team members where they discovered a Bob Marley, black and white bag which contained a submachine nine millimeter gun.  The vehicle managed to elude our highway patrol and the firearm was brought into the station and processed.  I want to explain that based on our See Something, Say Something, Stop Something and the District Defense Dome that we set up and because of the efforts of our Rural Rapid Response team, we were able to, based on the intelligence, avert a major burglary in the Ladyville area. I can safely tell you that we were able to foil a robbery that was planned to be committed in our area.  The objective of these perpetrators was to plant this submachine gun in a disclosed location in the Ladyville area last night where they would have come today or tomorrow to commit a major robbery in our area.  And due to the efforts and the cooperation that we’ve been having with our community and the efforts of our Rural Rapid Response team we were able to foil that plot.”

Reporter

“Sir, are you able to disclose to us if you have any details as to which business place or what would have been the mode of attack apart from just stashing the weapon?”

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster

“At this time we will not go into any further details as it relates to this plot.  We know that the perpetrators may want to continue with the plan but we want them to know that we know, and not in our division.”

While the vehicle and its passengers fled north in the direction of Orange Walk Town, officers commanding that jurisdiction were immediately notified of the incident.