Bail for Benque Duo Allegedly Found with AK-47 and Galil
On Tuesday, two Belizeans and a Guatemalan national were arraigned and remanded to the Belize Central Prison after being charged jointly for possession of prohibited firearms and ammunition. The indictments followed a bust in Benque Viejo on the morning of February tenth, when thirty-four-year-old Edgar De La O, twenty-six-year-old Jorge Luis Reyes Villeda and a seventeen-year-old minor were reportedly found in possession of an AK-47 assault rifle, as well as a Galil weapon inside a Range Rover parked outside of a nightclub in Benque. Tonight, two of the three suspects are out on bail after attorney Hurl Hamilton was able to secure their release earlier this evening.
Hurl Hamilton
Hurl Hamilton, Attorney-at-Law
“I am representing all three defendants. They were allegedly involved in a firearm issue in Benque. Edgar De La O, he’s a Belizean. Ulysses De La O, he is a Belizean and a minor, and we have a Guatemalan, Jorge Reyes Villeda. So I was representing all three of them. Mr. Villeda’s bail application, the Guatemalan, has been adjourned to next week Friday, as the judge would want written submissions before the judge considers bail.”
Isani Cayetano
“How were you able to secure bail for the other clients of yours?”
Hurl Hamilton
“In relation to the minor, the judge was mindful of the minor’s going back to school, the minor’s rights under the Families and Children’s Act, not to deprive him of his education. The crown didn’t have any objections based on those facts that were brought forth to the judge, so the judge was mindful to grant bail to the minor under those circumstances. In relation to Mr. Edgar De La O, he is a businessman from Benque. He got bail but under different consideration as he is an adult. The evidence that we have so far is left wanting. Also, the judge was mindful that the presumption of innocence must play a key role in deciding whether to grant bail. Of course, the judge has a discretion but at the end of the day, the judge was of the view that it is a case for granting bail.”
