Did Police Go Too Far During Raid of Gungulung Residence?

Allegations of police brutality are nothing out of the ordinary and tonight, a Belize City resident is claiming that police went too far this morning when they conducted a search at his residence in the Gungulung area. Around eight o’clock, Denmark Carr would rush home to find out that his girlfriend, Carla Belgrave, had been taken into custody by police for possession of weed and his dog, which he had from a pup, was shot and killed by the officers. The officers also ransacked the house and came up with a small quantity of weed, for which Belgrave pled guilty earlier this afternoon. Carr says that he has been constantly harassed by the police department.

Denmark Carr, Alleges Excessive Use of Force by Police

“They call me from where I deh and my woman tell me that dehn shoot my dog; lotta police deh yah di turn over everything, shot up my dog. So when I come home I found my dog dead with a bullet in ih chest on the ground. They bally chance my animal because my yard fence up, my gate lock and thing and dehn bally just shoot my dog from outside of the gate. So after they done shoot di dog, dehn enter the premise. From over the fence dehn shoot my dog and that dah total violation because I have a fence and I have a gate. Dehn shoulda mi call my gial at least or somebody. My bredda say he was in the other yard and nobody call he; dehn just shoot di dog.”

Duane Moody

“What were they looking for?”

Denmark Carr

Denmark Carr

“Dehn said dehn di look for drugs and ammunition. And I noh have none of that. Every time dehn come yah di look fi drugs dah back yah, dehn noh find nothing. Dehn keep on the listen to the informers out there weh di say that I di sell weed. Dehn say that dah weed dehn di come and look for this morning, but over and over dehn come and noh find nothing. Dehn find wah roach or two because I smoke my lee weed. Then when dehn find wah lee roach or two, dehn want make we do business, make I give them weed or money or make I knock off man weh I get weed from.”

Duane Moody

“So instead of coming to do the law, they come to try to extort you?”

Denmark Carr

“Yeah, extortion I call this because anytime they come and find a lee roach or a seed or a stem ina my house, they di talk about they want money, or they want so much pound. The last time, three weeks ago they come yah, dehn find two lee roach. That time I was here. They handcuffed me and look to take me. Dehn say dehn want two pounds of weed for the two roach. I ask weh I wah get that from. This two roach weh yo find noh even wah shake unu scale. Unu ker me go charge me one time mek I go plead guilty to the charge. Dehn neva ker mi nowhere, dehn take off the handcuff and dash away the roach.”

Duane Moody

“Sir so for how long has this been going on? I understand for years.”

Denmark Carr

“Yes, three years now. For three years dehn bally the come and harass me constantly every week dah back yah. Every week…I tired of dehn police. If dah noh the police, weh dah the zone truck dehn, dah the GSU or the K-nine. The whole unit lone come harass me and I am a hardworking carpenter.”

Duane Moody

“Sir, but why would they want to come back here and do you this man? Is it that they have intelligence that tells them that you are selling weed back here or anything like that?

Denmark Carr

“Yes, according to them, they get information that I di seell weed from back here.”

Duane Moody

“But is that so?”

Denmark Carr

“They could neva say dehn charge me fi no weed that dehn find back yah. Dehn neva find no weed back yah fi say yes, he dah di Der back here and we got evidence that dah fi he this.”