Shootout w/ police leaves bandit dead

Cops in the Cayo District were also caught in the line of fire this weekend as a mobile patrol was attacked by armed bandits near Bullet Tree village. According to the authorities shortly after midnight on Christmas day, villagers reported that mixed in with the celebratory gunshots, suspicious men were in the area also firing off rounds. Officers say when they responded, they spotted two armed men stooping down in the bush just off to the Bullet Tree road. Within seconds, the duo started pulling the trigger and the cops returned the favour. When the staccato of gunfire subsided, the criminals lay seriously injured on the forest floor. Both men were rushed to the San Ignacio hospital for treatment. Doctors pronounced one man dead but the other was treated for gunshot wounds to both legs. He has been identified as twenty-three year old Guillermo Tun of Branch Mouth village. Tun has been transferred to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital where he remains admitted to ward in stable condition and under police guard. His accomplice has yet to be identified but is believed to be a Guatemalan from the village of El Pilar, Peten. His body remains at the San Ignacio Hospital morgue. Both men were found armed, Tun with a thirty-eight revolver, and the Guatemalan with a three fifty seven magnum. Authorities say they strongly suspect that the two men are members of a gang of bandits responsible for recent armed attacks on the Bullet Tree road and surrounding areas. Investigating officers tell News 5 Tun is believed to be the mastermind of the group and they continue to actively scour the area for more of his partners in crime.