Mexican national’s drug and ammo case moved to Supreme Court

Zurisaday Villasenor Mendez

The case against Mexican national, Zurisaday Villasenor Mendez first started last December in the Corozal Magistrate Court. Villasenor is charged for prohibited ammunition, kept firearm without a license and possession of cannabis and cocaine following a bust at the Las Vegas Casino in Corozal. The case has run into numerous legal challenges and today Villasenor was transferred to Belize City for trial. The prosecution officially closed but there were no defense submissions because of concerns by the defense team that witnesses that the Director of Public prosecutions did not call, would have assisted their case. It got very testy in the court today between Magistrate Nadia Morgan and defense attorney Arthur Saldivar. Saldivar has been asking that she recuse herself from the case and wants the case to be elevated to the Supreme Court before it concludes in the magistrate court. News Five’s José Sanchez reports.

Jose Sanchez, Reporting

Mexican national, twenty-two year-old Zurisaday Villasenor Mendez, came to court with masked guards carrying M-16 rifles posted at the corners of the court building. The parents of the Mexican national joined him and his mother, according to Attorney Arthur Saldivar, was subjected to an unnecessary strip search today.

Arthur Saldivar, Attorney

“Mr. Mendez’s parents are professional people. His mother is a teacher; his father is a medical practitioner. Just today they came to Belize City where Misses Mendez was subjected to the most despicable act. As you can see, she is not wearing very loose clothing, but she was subjected to a strip-search. Their family attorney was also strip-searched upon coming to this court for whatever reason. These persons have been coming to court every day this case had been tried in Corozal and were never subjected to that kind of abuse. Certainly I consider it abusive that they had to have been subjected to that kind of treatment. I don’t know if this is universally applied to all Mexicans. I thought Mexico was a friend of Belize.”

Arthur Saldivar

At midday, Saldivar explained that moving the matter from the Corozal to Belize City courts has jeopardized his case because of an alleged threat to the court. He intended to have the case heard in the Supreme Court.

Arthur Saldivar

“The judge had been asked, the magistrate had been asked on other occasions to recuse herself on the basis of what the defense has posited as infractions that relate to fairness of trial.”

Jose Sanchez

“She is in fear of her family’s safety or her safety. Isn’t that reason enough? Isn’t that the basis of your submission today?”

Arthur Saldivar

“Yes, the way our system of law works, the arbiter of justice, in this case, the magistrate is both the judge of law and the judge of fact, she cannot be operating under any circumstance where fear or favor, affection or ill-will, forms an influence on a decision that is made. In this regard, we already see that a decision was made out of fear and that decision as to move the case from Corozal to Belize. So the fear that she has spoken of has manifested itself in a decision made to move the case. In that regard, the likelihood of a fair trial or a decision that is levied without a taint of that imposition is unlikely. And it is not something that stands within the realm of the law to uphold.”

His family has come to every court appearance, since they live in the neighboring Mexican state of Quintana Roo. His father explained that his son is not a threat to anyone.

Luis Villasenor Madrigal

Luis Villasenor Madrigal, Father of Zurisaday Villasenor Mendez.

“My name is Luis Villasenor Madrigal, father of Zurisaday Villasenor Mendez. He is a student in Chetumal, Quintana Roo, an excellent son. He doesn’t have a criminal history in Chetumal or any part of Mexico. He was at the wrong place at the wrong time. He’s like any other young boy who wants to go out and have fun. He stayed out a little later that night and I guess these are the consequences but Zurisaday is an exemplary son. He has a five year old brother and he has never been involved in any problems, none at all, no matter how simple, he has never and especially not for things like what he is facing now which has terrified us and we just don’t understand. He was with his girlfriend to what we were told. He met some guys, but he has not told me their names and he had a little too much to drink with them. He has never reached home drunk. They invited him to stay a little longer to sleep and that is all he did to stay and rest. He didn’t know anything; he didn’t really know them and the room was not in his name. he doesn’t know anything.”

When the officers came to transport him at the end of the session, Saldivar said the matter would no longer be heard at the lower court.

Arthur Saldivar

“For some time, the defense has been contending that there is a constitutional matter that needed to be determined at the Supreme Court in relation to this case that is being conducted. Finally today, with the assistance of the D.P.P. whose assistance was gravely necessary, the matter was actually sent up as a ‘case stated.’ We look forward to our day in the Supreme Court to be able to ventilate the issue and have the Supreme Court make its determination on the matter. I will leave it at that. I am very much pleased with the way it all turned out today.”

Reporting for News Five, Jose Sanchez.

The case adjourned this afternoon to a date yet to be announced.