Ferry Operator was found dead near Spanish Lookout

Martin Cesar Castellanos

A ferry operator was found dead near Spanish Lookout this morning. The body of Martin Cesar Castellanos was found suspended from a ferry but police are treating it as a case of sudden death. The family says that the circumstances show that Castellanos could not have taken his own life and furthermore they have information that someone with whom he had a confrontation, was seen leaving the area where the body was found. Duane Moody was in the west and spoke to family members surrounding Castellanos’ death.

Duane Moody, Reporting

Some six to seven miles outside of San Ignacio Town at the ferry in the Baking Pot area, the lifeless body of forty year old Martin Cesar Castellanos was found suspended from a bar on the ferry. Castellanos was working the night shift from four p.m. to seven a.m. when he died and his body was discovered at seven this morning. The circumstance surrounding his death is unknown and police are currently treating the matter as a sudden death. Ferry Operator, Eliud Cruz, was to relieve Castellanos this morning but when he got to work, he found police processing the scene.

Eliud Cruz, Ferry Operator

“When I come I see wah crowd a people on the ferry, when I gone fi my pay this morning at the credit union, the manager told me that they find somebody dead on the ferry. I say all I know is that Cesar worked last night because he take over from me to work yesterday evening. So I called his number but nobody answered the phone. So I pay wah taxi to hurry come voer yah and when I reach yah, I meet the police and crowd out yah. They say they find di man hang up right yah.”

Eliud Cruz

Duane Moody

“From what you saw, do you think that it is possible that he could have killed himself?”

Eliud Cruz

“Well we noh know. You could see somebody happy, but you don’t know if they have problem and thing. So we have to wait fi the post mortem to see dah what.”

But his death is a mystery because according to Cruz, if Castellanos had killed himself, his clothing or even the rope from which his body was suspended would have been smeared by grease from the wire rope of the ferry. The family also contends that there was suspicious evidence when they arrived at the scene, including fingerprints on his vehicle.

Elmer Castellanos

Elmer Castellanos, Brother of Deceased

“I believe they murdered him and they hanged him. First of all when we reach on the spot, we never get fi see him when they took him down or anything. His vehicle was on the right hand, on the San Ignacio side. I had to bring the vehicle to the San Ignacio police station so they could take the prints. He had all his cash on him. What I feel is that he always carry all of his things on the ferry and all of his things was in the car.”

Duane Moody

“When they would normally be on the ferry with him…”

Elmer Castellanos

“Yes. His bag, his food, his cap that he never took off. The cap was in the vehicle. Somebody murdered him and hanged him on that ferry.”

Mariam Castellanos

“When I reach, I just see wah lee thin rope and I just see the person di heng down with ih two hand down and if foot and I just see ih head di heng down and I mi feel really bad about it.”

Both Elmer and his sister, Miriam Castellanos, say that Martin’s life was threatened by a man, known to them and police, who is currently nowhere to be found.

Miriam Castellanos

Miriam Castellanos, Sister of Deceased

“Only one person he mi have enemy with and this person mi done used to threaten my bredda and get man fi beat my bredda one time and they had wah lee misunderstanding about wah cycle because he mi want wah four wheel cycle and my bredda mi tell ahn ih noh wah give ahn the cycle. So ih tell my bredda, if you noh di give me di cycle, you wah see what will happen and so now when I hear the news, the only thing I could recall back dah the message what this person tell my bredda.”

Duane Moody

“This confrontation was how long ago?”

Mariam Castellanos

“This conversation was just last week right yah about the cycle.”

Duane Moody

“You don’t think that it is possible that he killed himself?”

Mariam Castellanos

“No, my bredda would neva do something like that. It has to be that somebody take away my bredda life.”

Maria Castellanos

His wife, Maria Castellanos, who was visibly still in shock by the incident says that the last time she spoke to her husband was right before he left for work around three-thirty p.m.

Maria Castellanos, Wife of Deceased

“He mi deh yah whole day with we and then he mi have to go to work and then we noh see ahn again.”

Duane Moody

“What did you hear happen this morning?”

Maria Castellanos

“That something happen to him, but I noh really neva mi know dah what.”

Jules Vasquez, Channel 7

How did you find out that he had been found hanging at the ferry?”

Maria Castellanos

“My sister-in-law, somebody mi call she and she call my ma this morning.”

Jules Vasquez

“Do you think someone killed him?”

Maria Castellanos

“Yes somebody killed him. He said he mi wah come today soon and I di wait fi he and…”

Castellanos was a father of two girls—ages sixteen and one. The family now awaits a postmortem to determine the cause of death. Duane Moody for News Five.

Police say that late this evening, the post mortem results show that the cause of death was due to hanging but the case is still under investigation.