American National Busted for Illegal Entry at Corozal Free Zone

Chester Williams

An American national was busted up north for entering Belize illegally over the weekend via the Corozal Free Zone.  According to police, the man was intercepted while attempting to make his way through a hole in the fence of the compound.  He was immediately detained and taken into quarantine where he managed to escape from custody.  The visitor, says Commissioner of Police Chester Williams, was recaptured moments later and placed inside a holding cell at the Corozal Police Station where he is being tested for COVID-19.  But will he be expelled from the country after being charged under the state of emergency regulations?  Here’s what police say took place in the north.

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“We got that information, or we intercepted the individual, he was taken into quarantine, he was actually found within the free zone and yes, he came in from across the Mexican side illegally.  You would know that our borders are still closed and based on that he was detained and taken into mandatory quarantine as the law stipulates.  He subsequently escaped from quarantine but was quickly apprehended and my instruction to the officers in Corozal then was to clear a cellblock at the police station and he is now in police custody in the cellblock.  He has been charged with entering Belize illegally under the regulations.  I believe he has been swabbed by the Ministry of Health and as soon as the test results come back, if it is negative then he will go to court and we expect that when he goes to court if he pleads not guilty then he will have to continue to undergo quarantine until the twenty-one days are up before he is released or granted bail.  And so we are on top of that and again we know that there are a number of vulnerable areas on our borders and we continue to police those areas as best as we can.  It has yielded the arrest of a number of persons who came in illegally and it goes to show the efforts that security forces are doing with a view to ensure that our borders are not compromised at this time.”

Isani Cayetano

“Can I follow up on Daniel’s question? Is there any consideration for an expulsion order to be in place considering the fact that this individual is not a Belizean national?”

Chester Williams

“Well it’s a matter for immigration but we want to ensure that he is dealt with first for having violated our laws before we even contemplate an expulsion order, so we are dealing with him under the state of emergency regulations.”