Cayo murder leaves community on edge
The mood in Cayo this afternoon was one of anger mixed with disbelief. But as night falls on the twin towns there is a whiff of fear in the usually tranquil area as two cold blooded killers are on the loose and a well liked young man lies in the San Ignacio morgue.
The Mas family says they do not believe why anyone would want to murder twenty-year old Geoffrey Mas but they do not believe that Mas, who had just started work at Cahal Pech Museum as a caretaker, was killed because of robbery.
Marion Mena, Family Friend
“He was very friendly, he had ambition, he was not a violent person. He had plans, he was attending the Sixth Form at Sacred Heart College . He had a plan of what he wanted to do. He wasn’t a very troublesome person. He was very friendly, always giving jokes and making us feel happy.”
Jacqueline Woods
“So when the family heard what happened at the museum, you couldn’t understand why someone would want to harm Geoffrey?”
Marion Mena
“No, it was a shock, we didn’t understand why.”
Today, San Ignacio police were back at the crime scene trying to look for clues that would provide them with leads in the case. Mas was gunned down in front of a female employee between 4:00 and 4:30 Monday evening.
Jacqueline Woods
“The museum was just about to close for the day when two men entered the building, walked up to Geoffrey Mas and his eighteen year old female assistant. The woman said Geoffrey told one of the men “Take the money”. But instead the man pulled out a gun, pointed it to the back of Mas’ head and pulled the trigger.”
As Mas lay dead on a bench, the killer grabbed the young woman who took him to a cash draw. The woman said she does not know if the container had any money, but the man just grabbed it and went looking for his accomplice who was in a backroom where artifacts were stored. As the man walked away, the woman ran from the building. Police say because the men masked their faces in black paint they have been unable to get a solid identification of the men. The Mas family says they do not know if the killing is in connection with last year’s robbery at the museum, but say since that break in, they have been asking the Ministry of Tourism to provide some form of security and while they were promised that something would be done, nothing happened.
Marion Mena
“After the thing had happened when they stole the artifacts and stuff, I had asked if the place had any sort of security and they said no, but that they were going to put in some type of security, either the video cameras or something. But it seems that they were too slow. Why didn’t they do it right after.”
Today, the Mas family is appealing to the community to please come forward with any information they might have in the murder.
Marion Mena
“I would like for anyone who knows anything about what to place, who saw anything to please come and let anyone of us know. Because we would really like to know who, because of the situation, the way he died. I don’t know, just really ask the public for their help.”
We’d like to thank Kent Pandy of Cayo’s SEN TV for his valuable assistance on this story.
