Teenager arrested for armed robbery of money collector

In an update to Thursday night’s violent armed robbery in Punta Gorda, police have arrested the suspected gunman. According to authorities, a sixteen year old boy from Belize City is the person who attacked and shot money collector Darwin Pate at the corner of North and Main Streets. The assailant then stole Pate’s knapsack containing the proceeds of the day’s sales of Bowen and Bowen distributor, Arthur Johnson. Reports are that on Sunday, an anonymous tipster informed investigators that the gunman was leaving P.G. by plane under an assumed name. Cops met the teenager at the municipal airstrip and he has since been charged with a Mischievous Act, Robbery, and Attempted Murder. But while the accused gunman is behind bars, his victim is still hospitalised in serious condition. According to Darwin’s wife, Zita Pate, her husband is tonight in intensive care suffering from respiratory problems and kidney failure, which has required dialysis treatment.

Zita Pate, Wife of Gunshot Victim
“Well right now they are just praying that the medicines that they are using work and we just have to pray to the Lord that he overcome all what he’s going through right now because he is in a lot of pain right now.”

Marion Ali
“Is he talking?”

Zita Pate
“Yes, he started to talk and he is just saying that he’s in a lot of pain.”

Marion Ali
“Have they given you a prognosis as to what his chances could be?”

Zita Pate
“Well, they said that he can make it, but we just have to pray and we just have to believe that he can make it because after the first meeting we had, they said that he would be paralysed for life and that he might have to urine through tubes and all those things. So right now we’re just praying that he doesn’t have to go through all of those things.”

If you would like to assist the Pate family to defray the substantial costs associated with Darwin’s care, please contact Zita at The Belize Medical Associates. The gunshot victim is scheduled to undergo another surgery once his condition stabilizes.