Public Emergency Declared for Southside: Gang Members Rounded Up

Southside Belize City is on thirty days of lockdown. The Governor-General of Belize declared that effective today, August nineteenth; a public emergency exists in that part of the city.  This latest S.O.E. was proclaimed as a result of increasing gang violence in the city, particularly gang-related shootings. Commissioner of Police Chester Williams says the department has been faced with the challenge of gathering enough evidence to put known gang figures away after they commit these crimes.  Police and B.D.F. personnel have been actively detaining gang members since this early morning. ComPol Williams spoke to the press just before news time this evening.

Chester Williams

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

“We have seen a number of gang-related shootings in different parts of the City. While the police have been able to conduct investigations in relation to these incidents, by the admission of the surviving victims, as well as through our intelligence mechanisms, we have been able to pinpoint who are these persons behind these triggers. But, due to the fact that the surviving victims and witnesses in connection with the cases where the victims pass away, who do not wish to cooperate with the police investigation, when I say cooperate, I mean in terms of giving us what they may have seen in writing in the form of a statement, in order for us to effect an arrest, we have not been able to remove those persons off our streets. We find that for the most part whenever these things occur, for the most part, the relatives of the victims take their own retaliation. So that has made it hard for the police to arrest the situation by getting those people who are responsible, charged, and sent to prison. And so, we saw that particularly over the weekend that went, that the shootings were increasing, especially in the Antelope Street Extension area where there seems to be an intense feud over the sale of drugs between two rival groups, as well as the Mayflower area. As you know, that feud in that area has been going on for quite some time. And it has caused a number of lives. We saw over the weekend where a teenager went into the home of Joseph Panting and could have executed three persons. So, we have seen a number of reckless shootings from these gang figures. And so with that, I made recommendations to our minister to instate a state of emergency because we have been unable to remove these people off the streets due to non-cooperation on the part of victims and witnesses.”