Caye Caulker Woman Out on Bail after Making Indecent Proposal to Minor

Maria Estrella Jimenez Ortega

Thirty-one-year-old Maria Estrella Jimenez Ortega, a resident of Caye Caulker, was arraigned on May thirty-first in the San Pedro Magistrate’s Court for attempted trafficking in persons in relation to a then-seventeen-year-old minor. She was denied bail despite being eight months’ pregnant, but she was successful today in the Supreme Court. According to the minor, the Honduran national offered her money to sleep with friends of Ortega’s husband in September 2016, also demanding part of the payment for herself as re-payment for Ortega taking her in from Honduras. The minor refused, but even after going off to live on her own, she alleged Ortega harassed her for money she claimed she was owed. The minor reported the matter to police. Represented by Anthony Sylvestre, Ortega was set bail of fifteen thousand dollars by Justice Adolph Lucas after no objection by Crown Counsel Sheiniza Smith. Justice Lucas ordered Ortega to re-appear in court on all adjournment dates starting on July twenty-sixth. She must report to the Caye Caulker Sub-Police Station every Friday beginning on June fifteenth, and must stay away from the complainant.