Chinese National pays $1000 fine for frying chicken
Zijia Li
Is he a shop-keeper or a chef? That was the question that the courts were trying to figure out today. Thirty one-year-old Chinese national, Zijia Li, of Corozal Town was caught in violation of his work permit and today they took him to court to answer to a single immigration charge of having failed to comply with the conditions under which a temporary employment permit had been granted. He initially pleaded not guilty to the charge but after he was remanded to the Hattieville Prison for one week, Li changed his plea to guilty. He says it’s not because he was guilty of the offence they are accusing him, but because he just simply could not afford to go to jail for a week. Li’s arrest came early this morning when according to Immigration Personnel, there was a joint operation conducted with Immigration and Social Security Board that led them to visit Rong’s Restaurant on Central American Boulevard where they made checks in the restaurant and caught Li in the act of frying a chicken. A check of his work permit stated that he was only to work as a shop as a shop clerk at Shao Fen Zeng Shop in Corozal. Li said he was on vacation and only helping his cousin with the preparation of deep fried chicken for them to eat, not for a customer. With the aid of his translator, Lee Mark Chang, Li said he did not get justice today. He said that he cannot understand how is it that the Immigration Officer was successful in objecting to bail against him when he is not in the country illegally. The Immigration personnel had told the court that he objected to bail because the department can’t keep track of Li while he is out on bail and they believe this fried chicken chef is likely to abscond before the case goes to trial. At the close of the case, Li was fined one thousand dollars plus a cost of five dollars for the cost of court.
This is so stupid it hardly worth commenting on, but I would like to remind the immigration officer and even the court that we should realize that there are many illegal Belizeans in the USA sending back millions of dollars to Belize that play a great role in Belize’s foreign reserves. So what is all this heavy handed attitude all about because they caught someone frying a chicken? To me the explanation was quite rational. How could they prove that he was frying chicken to sell and not for personal consumption? Does his work permit stipulate that he had to remain only at the place for which he was granted a work permit? Where is commom sense. Get real you all?
they just trying to milk the poor guy.lol
but murderers, rapists and kidnappers walk free…
What they also need to do is to make daily check-ups with those darn Chinese restaurants to see how well prepared food are kept and stored; this man is not the only Chinese man frying chickens illegally for customers.
Those same deep fried chicken is contributing to your bad health, and is killing the Belizeans daily, and not even knowing it. Fatty food is not good for your health, try cooking healthy food for your families instead.
This is totally ridiculous….they must could have found something better to do…….
these are the stupidness that the law in Belize spend time and waste time? why the hell they dont visit homes and investigate the killers that walk free out of jail. thats the reason why Belize is in this crime state. hello people get real if you dont like the job oh sorry you are not qualify get people that qualify. we need professionals in this field. stop wasting your time with this nascence and get reall on the job. search for criminals and stop molesting people that are innocent and helping the community. charge people that kill and stop placing so many charges on the one that are trying to survive.
what a crazy charge, hope they’d search for criminal like that on alleys in the city or abandon house in the city also by the police.
To this the courts of Belize are getting. Gosh stop wasting time with this matters. What happen to the numerous murders all over the country. Que onda….
this is RIDICULOUS! lef di man lone!
Why don’t they check on big companies like Fruta Bomba in Corozal who has most of it’s management team from the US; I am almost positively sure they are not paying a cent in taxes for all the benefits they hold along with their fat salaries that are paid outside Belize; come on let’s do something about this…why bring foreigners to this country when our locals are as qualified to get the job done???
now adays law ppl no the think correct due to lack of things the are seeing happening. imagine a man getting charge just because of fry chicken, upon doing what he going to eat. damn . life is just …. . while ppl w2ho murder, who commit crime, walk free. come on migistrate. , think better than this . this is not fair. not because they are not from here. u know they give us better cost of food. mek he do an honest living. he don’t commit crime. he is trying to put his food on the table while being on street commiting crime.
thanks
dont the immigration department have anything better to do than just wondering all around ??? damn when u go to change ur passport… the process takes forever to renew it !!!!!
Things that the police or government should be focusing on they are not focusing on they are looking at petty stuff and there so much bigger fish to fry out there . That is the stupid thing i have ever heard they are a bunch of nonsentical jackasses .
This chinee is one that was not prepared to let go a few dallers to let the case go away . The chinese has been doing this for decades . Please mr law inforcement go after the illegal immegrants on the banana and citrus farms in southern Belize which are untouchable because they pay for campaign financing.
The “LAW” waste precious time and money on a man who might not have even been committing a crime when Aubrey’s and Chris Galvez’s and the many other’s killers are out there and ready to do it again. Obviously they need to get there PRIORITIES in check.
I know karma is a b… but I think it needs to hit ‘LAW’ officials closer to home to let them know it’s not going to get better on its own. They have to get up off there well payed (tax-payers-money) asses and do there JOBS.
Crazy! Get the criminals! Leave working people alone!
To go to court over FRIED CHICKEN? I thought they only did this stupidness in the states. If I was a lawyer, I would like to hear someone ask me to prosecute someone for frying chicken. Utter nonsense…
Why do not they go to the border and arrest the darn illegals crossing over uno use shot gun right deh, the illegals that come in and shoot in the air at the police and rob the xate and squat on our territories, and drug dealers and those are the ones we should arrest, mein 1000 dollars uno gain but I feel ashamed my country is stooping so low! Where is the courage?
How clearer can it get that the public simply don’t like the Police. Everyone here is complaining about the Police, when in fact the Chiney man was charged by IMMIGRATION. Police was not even present; however that is just to show. People you all need to wake up as well, let us be a part of the solution and not contribute to the problem any more. Let’s put our differences aside and try, even though it may be difficult, but let’s try to help the POLICE do their jobs.
I am sure that if Zijia Li was caught performing brain surgery in Belize, the authorities would have been lenient. However, for frying chichen it is a whole new story. Only in my Belize!!!
Leave people who are trying to help themselves.What do you want people to do.Do you want more roberies to occur? That arrest is total bananan oil.Go after does who are robbing leave innocent people alone.
Ha Ha Ha, the old rub down thinking he a relative of Li Chee
Learsiman shaddup!! wat locals u takin bout? which locals u see di fry chicken? get u facts straight. locals da belize da just like di locals everywhere. dey lazy an complain bout di foreigners when dey si di people di get head, but if lef lone dey no du nothing. so stop talk crap and left di po man lone.
and as fu di police da belize, dey really nid fi invest mo time fi ketch di piple dem weh di do all di killing an robbing of hard working belizeans before tings really get outta hand an everybody start carry guns.
“The Immigration personnel had told the court that he objected to bail because the department can’t keep track of Li while he is out on bail and they believe this fried chicken chef is likely to abscond before the case goes to trial”
WOW, CERTAINLY WE CAN’T AFFORD TO HAVE A CHICKEN FRYER OUT ON THE LOOSE!
RACISM – That is what this is all about!
Some folks are jealousy of the Chinese. They are allowed in Belize by our government so learn to live with it. They are hard workers and most of all (something that many Belizeans cannot do) they work together (no jealousy) and get things done. We should learn from these people; they are business minded and because they chop your dollar with your permission, some of us get vex.
As for Maddyvandijk talking about eating healthy. Have you checked our cuisine lately:
Fatty Foods: Fry Jack, Garnaches, Panandes, Tamales, Salbutes, Cow Foot Soup, Fried Plantains, Potato Salad, Conch Fritters, Home Fired Chicken, etc.
From one Belizean to another, be real! We are all one people, enjoy the Chinese but most of all, learn from their culture. I would rather deal with a Chinese person before dealing with the crooked minds of our very own (not all Belizeans are the same). The Chinese don’t force us to buy, we go there willingly.
One Love!
Take a look down central american blvd and watch all d way down in a straight line in both directions….All the huge buildings are owned by Asians.. They control the entire retail distribution network in the country… I watched Pitterson’s son open a bakery in Lake I and had to close down bc the shops would not carry his product…any asian can start a business and have their product in shops from corozal to toledo …. most of them pay to come here and bribe officials…. if we as belizeans do not do anything… in a few years we won’t be able to be business people bc the asian community will be in controll…. go to any developed country and do anything contrary to what a work permit says and see how quickly its revoked and u get shipped back just my 2 cents