Dickie Speaks Up for Body 2000 Workers

On Tuesday, proprietor Mark Neal and several of his employees were arrested for being inside Body 2000 Gym.  They were charged individually when they were unable to provide a reasonable explanation or proof of movement outside of a curfew and are facing fines of one thousand dollars each.  Despite their protest that the facility was shuttered and that they were inside the building carrying out maintenance work on the exercise equipment, they were all trooped to the Belama Police Station where they were processed.  Neal is represented by attorney Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley who argues that the law is not being enforced fairly since the incident on Saturday during which police officers shut down a number of stores on Albert Street did not result in charges being filed against those merchants.

Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley

Richard ‘Dickie’ Bradley, Attorney for Mark Neal

“The basic facts of the matter is as you reported yesterday and I think he and the workers are grateful that in fact Body 2000, Belize’s premier gymnasium which is a large investment and a huge building had about five persons inside.  The metal shutters were down with the padlock holding them in place and there is a fairly large sign which says that they are closed.  The police were obviously instructed to arrest and charge those persons, clearly, because they would never know that they were even inside.  In any event, a reasonable explanation has been offered as to why they were there.  The establishment was not open, they were not patrons who were there exercising.  Even if one or two ah dehn di fool round with the weight, that is not a patron who cohn cohn exercise, and so the big talking yesterday and today was that, weh di go ahn?  Dehn noh di apply di law fairly.  They are being selective in how they apply this law that is basically, listen, Belize is COVID-19 free, we all know that.  Not a soul noh holla, bwai I got trouble fi breed, I haffi go da hospital, nobody.”