Accused killers captured in Mexico

Many Belizeans will sleep more soundly tonight, armed with the knowledge that two of the most wanted fugitives in Belizean history have been captured. The story of how accused quadruple murderers Leslie Pipersburg and Patrick Robateau wound up in the custody of Mexican authorities is only just emerging, but on the basis of information from various sources its appears that–like most police work–the success can be attributed to a combination of luck and skill. What we know is that Pipersburg and Robateau were picked up in Tijuana, Mexico by Mexican immigration officials as they attempted to cross the border into the United States. Sources indicate that their detention came as the result of a routine check and not as the result of any suspicion that the pair was wanted by Belizean authorities. When asked to provide identification, the two produced phoney IDs that showed them to be U.S. citizens. Upon questioning by the Mexicans, the fugitives eventually admitted to Belizean nationality, but at this time they appeared to be nothing more than two more guys trying to reach Babylon through the back.

According to standard procedure, the detainees were brought to Mexico City where they would receive a routine interview at the Belize Embassy to verify their nationality prior to being deported back to Belize. It is here that lady luck once again intervened. During their interview at the Belize Embassy, the Belizean consular official thought that one of the men looked strangely familiar. She left the room to consult a recent issue of The Belize Times that confirmed her suspicions. When confronted with this news during a subsequent interview, the two men eventually admitted their true identities. Pipersburg and Robateau remain in Mexican custody and as soon as the formalities are completed– likely in a few days–they will be returned to face justice in Belize. The two men are the prime suspects in the murder of four people committed on the night of June eighteenth in conjunction with the robbery of the Bowen and Bowen depot in Belize City. According to police, the men were sighted in Chetumal on the weekend of June twenty-second and are believe to have visited Cancun before heading north to Tijuana. They were detained there on June twenty-seventh, but not positively identified at the Belize Embassy until yesterday.