Search Continues for Roaring Creek Man Believed to be Murdered

Corwin Mendoza

Police suspect that Corwin Mendoza, who has been missing since Sunday, was murdered and his body disposed of in the river at Roaring Creek. Mendoza’s family says he left his house to visit his girlfriend; his personal belongings would later be found along the river trail. Two persons are custody; one who is related to his girlfriend. The motive for his purported demise is not known nor has his body been found. Duane Moody reports.

Duane Moody, Reporting

The search for twenty-four year old Roaring Creek villager, Corwin Mendoza, continued today. Corwin was last seen on Sunday evening when he went to visit his girlfriend who resides approximately three blocks from where he lived in the village. On Monday, following a report made to Belmopan police, an investigation has revealed that Corwin had been injured and his body possibly dumped in the river nearby. Two persons, also from the village, have been detained in connection with his disappearance.

Voice of: Ernesto Mendoza, Father of Missing Man

“He was unemployed and looking for a job. I can’t really say that Corwin was a trouble person. If you didn’t interfere with him, he would never bother with you. But he is the type of person that if you mess with him, he would always defend himself and things like that. Really I don’t know what transpired. I know he had a relationship going with the young lady in the yard in which we believe he was hurt and believe that he was murdered as well. So our greatest hope is to try to find his body that we can bring closure to this whole entire scenario.”

According to Corwin’s father, Ernesto Mendoza, word in the village is that his son screamed for his life as he was attacked by two men at a house known as the zinc fence in the village.  What happened thereafter is unknown, but along the trail to the river, what is believed to be Corwin’s socks, shirt and several bloodstains were found. Ernesto says he wants justice for the murder of his son…because for him all indications are that he is dead.

Voice of: Ernesto Mendoza

“I’m really hoping that if we find his body that the authorities will really do what they need to do and really bring justice because I mean too many times these things happen, people hear and things just goes unsolved. One of the other thing that really disturbs me; I can’t say it is true but there are a lot of rumors. And I feel that if someone is screaming for his life and people are hearing, I think at least somebody should have called the police. We may not have been able to save his life, but at least we would have been able to find him or have his body by this time. So that’s one of the things that really…it hurts us. Personally we are not seeking revenge; that’s not part of our personality.  I think that if Corwin was only injured and not murdered. If he was injured and could have found himself home, he would have found himself home from that very night and he would have sought help. He has been hurt before and he found his home and we were able to give him assistance.”

Today, residents as well as the police and the coast guard are conducting simultaneous searches on land and on the surface of the river.

Gregory Soberanis

Lt. Gregory Soberanis, Commander, First Fleet, Belize Coast Guard

“Yesterday we provided divers as the police believe that he may have been disposed of in the creek that flows through Roaring Creek. Currently the search is ongoing. We are assisting with providing people who are conducting a surface search of the river from Roaring Creek all the way up to Banana Bank. We have also suggested and recommended that a secondary sweep be conducted of the creek as well. I know the police is also conducting a land based search as well. So it is a massive search effort trying to locate the missing individual and to bring closure to the family as well.  From our past experiences—and we’ve done this type of operations on several occasions, as you know—we have observed that a body normally floats after two days. In all the cases that that Coast Guard has conducted, we have never seen a body exceed three days, quite frankly. So we are anticipating that either today or tomorrow, the body may be located.”

It’s day two and the search continues along the river bank for Corwin. Duane Moody for News Five.