Shopkeepers close in Dangriga; Gov’t responds

Chinese owned businesses in Dangriga kept their doors closed today as part of a two day shutdown, their response to what they believe is a deteriorating crime situation in that community. As for possible reasons why other businesses didn’t participate in the closure, one storeowner told News 5 that the economic loss would have been too significant. The drastic measure taken by the Chinese follows the cold-blooded murder of shop keeper Wen Dong-lui early Saturday morning during a robbery attempt. Twenty-one year old Leslie Gentle and nineteen year old L’Tanya Gongez have since been arrested and charged for the murder, and police say they have found two nine millimetre pistols used in the crime. This morning in Belmopan, a delegation of six concerned residents from Dangriga met with Minister of Home Affairs Ralph Fonseca to discuss the town’s crime situation. Immediate responses to the problem included the allocation of five additional officers and a patrol vehicle to the town. Fonseca and the group also tossed around ideas on neighbourhood watch programmes and increased access to resources for the police department. According to a government press release, Fonseca managed to convince the businesspeople to go home and ask those enterprises that closed today, to reopen tomorrow. And there’s solid logic behind the minister’s request…on Wednesday, Prime Minister Said Musa resumes his nationwide tour in that municipality. A town meeting is planned for Thursday so that all residents will have an opportunity to voice their concerns, and recommendations, regarding crime in Dangriga.

And in a strange sidebar to this story, a reporter covering the murder of Wen Dong-lui, claims she was held against her will by the Wen family for more than an hour on Tuesday afternoon. Sources tell News 5 that Anita Nembhard of the Amandala newspaper, had been interviewing the family for about an hour, when suddenly they changed their minds about participating in her story, locked their doors and demanded her notes. The reporter refused to hand over anything and tried to reason with the family for approximately an hour. To her relief, the family finally called her editor to plead their case and the reporter was able to explain her plight to her boss. Amandala‘s editor immediately called the cops and upon their arrival, Nembhard made a quick exit. At news time tonight no charges had been filed against the Wen family. It is believed that the family’s strange behaviour was the product of their overwhelming grief upon the loss of Wen Dong-Lui.