Police update public on recent crimes
It’s been a busy holiday season for the nation’s police officers and it doesn’t look like they’ll get some rest any time soon. Today the high command shared their burdens with the press.
A.C.P. Crispin Jeffries, O.C. Eastern Division
?The media and the police have a lot to do in relation to what happens in the Belizean community. As we see, crime and crime problems escalate, as we see political activities beginning to already show their head, as we see the ongoing effort to settle the bus crises. There?s a number of other burning issues and I know that 2006 will not be an easy year for us, especially the weeks ahead.?
Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
Today the Police Department called its first press briefing for the New Year. Three days into 2006, authorities are investigating a murder, an unusual traffic accident, and several shooting incidents. One such case involves twenty-three year old George Frazer who died this morning after being treated for a gunshot wound he received on Sunday after he fired shots at Police Constable Donald Gillett and the officer returned fire.
Supt. James Magdaleno, C.I.B.
?P.C. Gillett was at the meat shop on Pen Road when his attention was drawn to an argument a couple distance from where he was. As a result of that, P.C. Gillett went to inquire what was taking place. When he arrived on the scene, there was the deceased George Frazer who was having an argument with one of the fellows in the yard at number 188A Pen Road. The fellow uttered that he was leaving the area and will return. He in fact returned, passed where Gillett was, where Gillett observed him to have a firearm.?
The weapon has been identified as an Uzi machine gun. Frazer reportedly fired two shots at P.C. Gillett who responded by firing back several shots from his licensed thirty-eight revolver. One of the bullets? caught Frazier in the right side of his abdomen. Frazier had just been released from Hattieville prison.
A.C.P. Crispin Jeffries
?Frazer was released from prison around the ninth, between the seventh and the ninth of December 2005. He was serving a three year sentence for firearm possession and sometime between the seventh and the ninth, I want to think it?s the eighth, but there is this early release day sometime between the seventh and the ninth. He was released from prison after serving eighteen months for ammunition and prohibited firearm possession. He served eighteen months, eight months on one and three years on the other, so he?s recently out of prison.?
Police are also investigating a traffic accident involving a small car and a horse and buggy that was carrying eleven children. Sergeant of police Clement Cacho, who was off duty at the time and in his private vehicle, reported that as he reached for his cell phone he hit a bump which caused him to loose control. Luckily, the children escaped with only minor injuries. The accident is being investigated and no one as yet has been charged. Police say people on the scene were angry as the police tried to maintain law and order.
A.C.P. Crispin Jeffries
?Yes, the horse and carriage, the top of it was off, but if you would examine it you will find that only the right front wheel was damaged. Other than that, it could have been removed on its own, we pulled it away. Similarly, there were some serious concerns on the part of the owners of the operation that operated the horse and carriage. They were concerned about the loss of the horse, they wanted a lot of information and they took a lot of pictures. And then there were those onlookers who wanted to intimidate the police. You may have seen the ones walking around with the camera wanting to know where the media houses are, because they were not coming to take footage and we will give this to the media houses and all sorts of intimidation. But the police is trained to manage civil disobedience.?
Cacho has been served with a notice of intended prosecution and police continue their investigation. Jacqueline woods for News Five.
Five murders during the last week in December pushed the unofficial total for 2005 to seventy-eight. That’s four less than the eighty-two homicides we counted in 2004.
