Son Faces Prison Time for Stealing $38K from His Mother

Jose Raul Pineda

Twenty-five-year-old Jose Raul Pineda, a construction worker of Belize City, appeared unrepresented in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court earlier today where he confessed to stealing thirty-eight thousand, five hundred dollars in cash from his mother.  It is alleged that sometime between December twentieth, 2022 and January third, 2023, he stole twenty-five thousand dollars in cash in Belizean currency, as well as six thousand, seven hundred and fifty U.S. dollars from Flor Pineda, his mother.  The laborer has been remanded to the Belize Central Prison pending sentencing.  That date has been set for February sixth.  On Friday, the fifty-one-year-old Guatemalan national reported to police that she traveled to her home country on December twentieth, 2022, leaving the large quantity of money in her room.  She further stated that only her daughter-in-law who resides at the home with her, had knowledge of where the money was being kept.  When she returned to Belize on January third, she discovered that the money was missing from that location.  The senior magistrate informed Pineda that a person found guilty of theft on indictment faces ten years in prison, however, since the matter is being dealt with summarily and while the penalty is a little lesser in prison time, the offense is one the court takes very seriously.