Belizean Pirates Nabbed in Honduras
On Tuesday, a group of sea pirates were detained in Puerto Cortez, Honduras. Believed to be the masterminds behind the attacks at sea in southern Belize, six Belizean men and two Honduran nationals were captured during a sting operation carried out by law enforcement officers from that neighbouring country. News Five’s Duane Moody reports.
Duane Moody, Reporting
The Belize Coast Guard along with its partner agencies have been working around the clock to track and capture the persons behind what has been an increase in criminal activity at sea. The coastal pirates had an organized network and worked between Belize and neighbouring Honduras where stolen engines and products can be sold in exchange for guns and drugs.
Commander Gregory Soberanis, Acting Commandant, Belize Coast Guard
“We’ve been not only collecting the information, but we’ve been connecting those information. So we collect the dots and connect the dots. We have been working closely with our Honduran counterparts as we know that those guys were in Honduras, we knew where they were and we were able to vector in on these sea pirates and thank God yesterday a strike operation was conducted where they were arrested and found with the items that were mentioned.”
Frank Gallo
The strike operation was conducted in the Baja Mar community of Puerto Cortez and led to the arrest of six Belizean men and two Hondurans.
Frank Gallo, Police Commander, Puerto Cortez [Translated]
“In the area of Baha Mar is where the six Belizeans were detained. We confiscated six boat engines and we believe that there were responsible for the robbery of engines to traffic drugs. These persons are being dealt with by immigration officials so that they can be expelled from the country.”
The Belizean detainees are Jaime Nolberto Coote, Vincent Esron Martinez, Fernando Avila, Justin Floyd Palacio, Jeremy Waylon Leslie and a seventeen-year-old minor – all reportedly from southern Belize. All are well known to local law enforcement.
Gregory Soberanis
Commander Gregory Soberanis
“We have come in contact with them. We now know their respective area of operation; we were able to determine how they operate; what was their modus operandi and their associates, their foot soldiers. So while some of their key members have been detained and arrested, we will go after these foot soldiers and our intent Duane, and I say this without apology, our intent is to crush them. We know that there are times when the criminal elements who operate here, that their Honduran counterparts come into our sea spaces. In fact one of the Hondurans that have been detained is a key member of the Honduran cartel. So like I said, Duane, this is significant for us, but by no means is this the end.”
For some time now, southern Belize has been the target area for sea pirates who have been robbing fishermen of their products and boat engines. In a most recent incident, a private island resort off the Placencia peninsula was invaded and the owner shot multiple times before the men escaped with his boat and an undisclosed amount of items.
Commander Gregory Soberanis
“We know that it is not only about the guys in Honduras. We know that they are associates of this group who still are here in Belize. Last week we were able to locate one of their vessels; we were also able to locate the engine from the vessel that was stolen from the shooting victim in Placencia. So all these things law enforcement has in its custody and we will continue to pursue the associates of this criminal element. We will not stop and I want them to know that. The coast guard is at war and we will go after them. We will ensure that these guys face the penalties of the law. This is only the first phase of the operation that we have designed and we will continue to relentlessly pursue the criminal elements who have committed crime in our sea spaces.”
Today, the detainees are being processed by Interpol and Honduran authorities. They will then be taken into custody by Belizean authorities where a slew of charges is expected to be levelled.
Commander Gregory Soberanis
“I’ve been informed that coordination is currently underway for them to be handed over to Belizean authorities. So that’s where we currently are with that particular situation. There are several offenses that can easily be identified so I know that is a matter that our police counterpart will deal with and I have full confidence in the capabilities of the police to do what they need to do. There may also be some immigration offenses as well. There are many components to this case so as it continues to unfold, more will surface and we will look at how these criminals, these coastal pirates will be handled.”
Duane Moody for News Five.
