Chinese arsonist drowns as he hides from police
As crime stories go, they don’t get any stranger than this one. The drama centres around one man–a little known Chinese resident of Belize–who in one brief span of time this morning managed to commit arson and attempted murder before losing his life by drowning as he hid from police. Ann-Marie Williams tried to make sense of the bizarre sequence of events.
Ann-Marie Williams, Reporting
“Reports are that around 5:30 this morning a fire started at the upper flat of this building on Baymen Avenue–Lucky Real Estate. Police are not able to say how the fire started or why. What they can say, however, is that twenty-two year old Lee Chien Hui, a student of Hong Kong who resided at a guest house in Belize City, was seen running from the scene. What Hui’s next door neighbour Errol Usher, told us this morning may help to explain this strange story.
Errol Usher, Next Door Neighbour
“One of the Chinese men that live over there came to us and said he lost his key and needed our help to get into his house. I know that he stays up there, so me and my friend went and helped him boost open the door and he gave us some money. Afterwards we went home and when I got home this morning my mom told me that a lot of stuff happened and that he tried to burn to burn down the house.”
And after burning some of the things in the house he was intercepted while escaping by Mark Pollard who lives on Nurse Seay Street. He saw the smoke and tried to help. Little did he know that his kindness would not be appreciated.
Mark Pollard, Passer By
“About 5:30 I was leaving from home en route to work when I noticed a Chinese descent male coming from upstairs of Fort George Pharmacy. He was running and looked suspicious to me, so I went back inside and I told my wife that I saw this person. I also went back to get a jacket. I closed the door and I left to go to work. While I was going through the entrance to Baymen Avenue, I saw smoke coming from the back entrance of the house. I looked down the street and I saw Sir Andie’s son, so I told him go and tell his father that one of his building is on fire. I went back inside and notified my wife and told her to call the Fire Department.”
Pollard says he and Sir Andie tried to put out the fire.
Mark Pollard
“I climbed up the back entrance and looked inside and saw the whole back portion was in flames already. I went around and came up the front steps and stamped open the door. We saw the whole place engulfed in flames already. I told Mr. Andie not to go inside, because I didn’t know what the situation was. I told him I saw the Chinese man coming from up there and saw him go back down the direction of Baymen Cable. After that he (the Chinese man) was waving me down, so I stopped and when I did, he was asking or telling me something in Chinese, which I did not understand. I told him “you will know,” but I just smile because I wanted to get a description of the person.”
Ann-Marie Williams
“Did you ask him what happened?”
Mark Pollard
“I didn’t ask him anything. He told me to wait, and I thought to myself that he wanted to get a book to write it down so I could understand. When he opened his luggage, he had four bags with him, he took out a white shirt and when he opened it I saw the gun. I said to myself, “I was going to get shot.”
And his getting shot only thickened the plot as Hui ran down the street and into Robert Moaney’s yard on Baymen Avenue with a crocus sack, a large travelling bag, a kit bag, a knapsack on his back and gun in hand.
The Moaneys say they were unaware of his presence until they heard a commotion and looked out.
Robert Moaney, Owner of Vat
“I heard my wife talking to someone and I came downstairs. When I came down there was a gentleman outside.”
Ann-Marie Williams
“This is the Chinese man?”
Robert Moaney
“Yes. I walked to the side of the house. He was also to the side over there standing in front of our vat. My wife was upon the veranda talking to him telling him she had called 911 because he was saying someone was after him that stole his money. He got on top of the vat. We were still talking to him. By that time a policeman rode up on the bicycle in view of the vat and as soon as he saw the policeman, he jumped inside the vat.”
“When he jumped inside I was about eight feet from the vat. I ran up to the vat, reached my hand inside the opening and the only thing that came up was his backpack. I could hear him coughing and choking because he was going toward the back of the vat, and then there was silence.”
Hui had obviously drowned in the vat of water.
Police then had the task to sledge hammer four holes to drain out some water to try to reach him. The Fire Department also pumped out water until it was almost empty. A Fire fighter then used a ladder and a rope to go in and finally fish out Lee Chien Hui’s dead body. Ann-Marie Williams for News 5.
Police say they are not able to substantiate if Hui broke into the establishment and then set the house on fire. The man who rents the house, Shou Hong Tai, is in Guatemala. The gun recovered from the vat is also registered to Shou.
