A Group of Turkish Nationals Intercepted in Benque; Driver Escapes

On Monday night, eighteen Turkish nationals were intercepted out west, in Benque Viejo del Carmen. They were caught onboard a pickup truck after they crossed into Belize through the western border with Guatemala. Reports are that the driver escaped when the police intercepted the vehicle. Today, Commissioner of Police Chester Williams spoke briefly of the incident and the work that the Belize Police Department, as well as the Department of Immigration, has been doing to stem human trafficking.

Chester Williams

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“The police and the Immigration Department continue to work together, looking at the whole issue of human smuggling. I guess those persons are detained as a part thereof. I don’t have much information at this time; it is an ongoing investigation being done with police and immigration. So, as soon as that investigation is completed, then we will be able to provide more to the media. The whole issue of human smuggling is multinational. It is not just Haitian or Turkish and Asian, it is multinational and we do from time to time would come across persons from all over the world including South America, trying to go through Belize to get to the north.  And so yes, while we may be stretched thin, we do have officers working in different parts of the country with immigration and customs as a part of our multisectoral operations and they have been doing a lot in terms of capturing persons who are believed to be involved in human smuggling as well as human trafficking. So those operations are going to continue with a view to ensure that we do our utmost best to stem the whole issue of human smuggling through Belize.”