Benque customs officer killed in Melchor

Tonight police investigations continue into the death of a government employee who was shot and killed on Thursday night in a Guatemalan Town.

Gregory Gibson, Ag Comptroller of Customs
?I would say that the Department has already been deeply distressed and sadden by his death and we hope that it could spare us on to greater challenges. He would be missed.?

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
Today the Customs Department says it is mourning the death of a venerated employee and one of its most resourceful officers: thirty-six year old Alberto Coba better known as Coddington. Coba, a grade two customs officer, was shot to death when he and four of his fellow officers came under fire while socializing in a drinking establishment in the border town of Melchor de Mencos, Guatemala.

Jacqueline Woods
?Custom officials say the information they have received is sketchy, but what they know so far is that Coba had just finished his day shift and went over the border with three of his co-workers. The men were sitting at a table when a lone gunman of Guatemalan descent walked into the building and opened fire. The custom officers tried to get away by running outside of the establishment but a bullet caught Coba to the side of his head. He collapsed and died shortly after.?

News 5 understands it is the habit of custom officers working at the western border to go over the border after working hours to socialize. According to acting comptroller of Customs, Gregory Gibson, the tradition should have occurred without any incident. Today it is not sure what additional measures will now be taken in light of the murder, but Gibson says custom officers are aware that certain risks do exist, but were generally comfortable being in the foreign environment.

Gregory Gibson
?As an enforcement officer, in those areas you are comfortable going over there because you generally know the people you?re dealing with. But you also have to be mindful of the risk because you are a target, they might mistake you for someone else. We understand the officers did not have on their badges to make it immediate identity of who they were.?

?I would also say in the majority of instances and certainly over the years we have had very good working relationships with the enforcement authorities, the customs, and army at the frontier there. But in terms of the socializing aspect, it?s without costing any aspersions and behaviours over there. It?s certainly different from how we do things here in Belize.?

Alberto Coba started working at the Custom Department in 1989. Today the Department?s flag of Belize was flown at half mast to in honour of his memory.

Gregory Gibson
?What we can recall of Alberto was that he was very rounded but not only that he was a classification expert. He had a background in chemistry and he used to work with some aspects of the Quarantine Department before he came here. So he is one of the experts that we depended upon in analysing chemical imports. Aside from that, he was not a trouble maker and he contributed willingly.?

Belizean authorities say they will be working along with their Guatemalan counterparts to find out what led to the murder. But police press officer G. Michael Reid explains why such cases are sometimes difficult to solve.

G. Michael Reid B Police Press Officer
?We do have good working relationship with the Police Department in Guatemala but it?s not that easy. As you know, there is an ongoing case right now where we in fact pretty much know who committed the crime and the person is in fact a Belizean and that has posed some difficulties, which we are trying to work out as we speak. Certainly in a case like this, we have to rely heavily on the Guatemalan authorities and we don?t even know that if they have in custody the person who did it. I understand the person just went and randomly fired shots. Unfortunately, this individual was hit.?

We understand that Belize police have already made an initial contact with the Guatemalan police to see how both authorities can bring the criminals to justice.

Coba had worked at posts in Corozal and Dangriga and was on his second stint at the western border when he was murdered.