Will Charges Be Brought Against Boat Captain Whose Vessel Ran Aground on Reef?

Adele Catzim-Sanchez

As to the French national who captained the vessel, he has not been seen or heard from since. So will there be any charges laid against him for the damage to the reef. 

Adele Catzim-Sanchez, C.E.O., Ministry of Forestry, Fisheries and Sustainable Development

“I think that…it just for us provides an opportunity for us to strengthen our multisectoral response. Because there are things…while we understand why we need to have people here, we also have to follow the existing rules and regulations and the legal system. We can’t operate outside of that. So we are already seeing gaps that need to be strengthened so that we can help to mitigate this kind of activity from happening over and over again. But that is something that we are looking on to revisit the entire multisectoral protocol to see what it is that we can do on our end. It is natural for people to feel that they are in a different country and might want to be in the safety of their own home environment, but at the same time, we know that we have a responsibility to the Belizean people and to the global community to protect what is truly unique which is the barrier reef system.”

Duane Moody

“Are there any charges that can be brought against this man?”

Adele Catzim-Sanchez

“Our ministry has been working with the solicitor general’s office to get their legal advice on how we can make charges in absentia. And so even in terms of dismantling the boat, all of that has required us to work with the solicitor general’s office and they’ve been very supportive in going through the legal system to get all the requisite legal documents in place to be able to do what is necessary to address this situation. And that includes the work of negotiating with the insurance company and yes, we have to complete the assessment as soon as we get the boat off the reef. We have a preliminary assessment, but not until we are able to lift the vessel off the reef will we be able to see all the damage.”