John Briceño Says Police and Immigration Departments Goofed Up

John Briceño

The issue of Mason’s licenses to lawfully have in his possession an arsenal of weapons was also brought up today.  Opposition Leader John Briceno questioned the acquisition of those gun licenses, as well as his citizenship; citing both as failures in due diligence on the part of the Police Department and the Immigration Department, respectively.

John Briceño, Leader of the Opposition

“If indeed Mr. Saldivar severed ties with Mr. Mason last September, on the strength and advice of the police that this man, his business associate, at least in the football club, had an unsavory background, then the question is: When and how did Mr. Mason qualify for and receive multiple gun licenses from the Police Department?  If he received them after September last year, then the police and the National Security Minister have some serious explaining to do.  And if he received the gun licenses before September of last year, then we must ask: Why weren’t those licenses immediately cancelled?  Also, why wasn’t Mason hauled before the Immigration Department since the internet reports, the same one Mr. Saldivar said he had received, showed Mr. Mason to be actually named Ramesh Quellett and the holder of both Canadian and Guyanese nationalities?  A further investigation would have also revealed that the man was removed from Canada because he was convicted of possession of prohibited or restricted firearm with ammunition in August 2006. While Minister Saldivar must answer many, many questions about how this man was able to get multiple gun licenses, even when a simple Google search turned up so much that brings his character into question, Immigration Minister Godwin Hulse also has a lot more explaining to do.  On Monday, Minister Hulse blamed Vital Statistics for the fact that foreigners are able to get bogus certificates and eventually end up with Belizean passports.  The question is: what has the government done to ensure that these perennial violations and acts of corruption are stopped?  If William Mason, a man who is the lead suspect in the cutting off of the head of a Belizean pastor, could get a bogus birth certificate, who is to say whether or other dangerous international criminals and terrorists haven’t been able to do the same and eventually get Belizean passports?”