Father and son murdered in Stann Creek

Life is cheap in Belize–at least that’s the way it seemed this weekend–as no less than four people found themselves on the wrong end of fatal violence. The most gruesome killings occurred in the Stann Creek District where a father and son were brutally butchered.

A.S.P. Russell Blackett, O.C. Dangriga Police Station
?To tell you the truth I would call it gruesome. They suffered for some time and I do not want to go into details because I do not want to jeopardize the case. They suffered before they died.?

Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting
Thirty-eight year old Jose Alvarado Sr. was beaten and stabbed numerous times to the neck and ear. Sixteen year old Jose Alvarado Jr. had a long deep cut under the neck that almost decapitated him. Police believe the father and son were killed after they were kidnapped sometime after nine on Thursday night from the Southern Choice Butane Depot where they worked at mile nine on the Stann Creek Valley Road. According to A.S.P. Russell Blackett, officer in charge of Dangriga, when they arrived at the gas depot everything appeared to be normal except for some blood spots.

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?We realize there and then that we found some blood spots which indicated that they were harmed right there on the compound. Then taken to the Coastal Road where they were probably murdered.?

The bodies were not found until almost one day later around six thirty on Friday evening.

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?We conducted searches for whole of Friday morning, from six o?clock until about six thirty Friday evening. We called of the search at six thirty, when it began to get dark, and ten minutes later we received some information that the truck was spotted.?

The pickup truck was found parked in the middle of the road about three and a half miles into the old Mullins Road.

This afternoon the police escorted to Dangriga Magistrate?s Court the person they believe were involved in the kidnapping, robbery and double homicide. Brothers, nineteen year old Noe Alberto Guerra, twenty-one year old Hector Lopez, twenty-one year old Herbert Sosa and thirty year old Jose Aleman. The police believe the motive for the murder was robbery.

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?Investigation led us, mostly from what we found out over the last few days that it was robbery.?

Jacqueline Godwin
?Do you believe that it was planned for sometime??

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?I don?t know if it was for sometime but we have some information that it was planned.”

Jacqueline Godwin
?You said that you believe the motive for the murder was robbery, so how much are we talking about??

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?More or less from the manager?s point of view, the tally they did was something over seven thousand dollars.?

Today we found a very distraught Leticia Alvarado at the police station. Alvarado not only has to deal with the death of her father and brother but the fact that her common law husband of four years–Jose Aleman–is suspected to be the person who planned the gruesome crime.

Leticia Alvarado, Daughter and sister of the deceased
?I tell him make him look straight in my eyes and tell me the truth. The thing is that he told me that if I believe the policeman or him.?

Jacqueline Godwin
?He is telling you that he wasn?t involved??

Leticia Alvarado
?Yes. He told me that he wasn?t involved and not to make me believe that because it isn?t true.?

Jacqueline Godwin
?What do you believe Leticia??

Leticia Alvarado
?I no think it is true. I don?t think my husband would do that. I no think so.?

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?Well of course when the charges are tabled, more or less we will tell you who was involved. The charges speak for themselves.?

Jacqueline Godwin
?Do you know why your father and brother were killed?

Leticia Alvarado
?No. they just told me that they went into the place and looked like they wanted to thief. But then I think like how my father knows them good, that?s why they took them and killed them, so that they would not say anything.?

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?We have sufficient evidence from what we know to charge, just the warrant to charge. An investigation continues we don?t want in any way to prejudice the case.?

News five understands the police found some of the stolen money at the homes of two of the accused. The cash was in a black plastic bag that was buried in the ground in the back yard. Meanwhile Blackett credits good police work and community participation for the quick arrests.

A.S.P. Russell Blackett
?We had certain information on Friday, prior to when the body was found. We received information about mid-day on Friday, and it was then that we knew that we had to look for two other persons. After we picked up these people on Saturday, then we had to go for the fourth.?

At the time of his murder sixteen year old Jose Alvarado Jr. had only just started working with his dad for the summer to make money for school supplies.

Leticia Alvarado
?I just want them to kill them, so they don?t stay alive. This will happen to somebody else if they just go to jail. In twenty, fifteen years and they will be out, and they will kill somebody else. I don?t want somebody else to pass like this hard moment that I am passing right now.?

Hector Lopez had been charged with Murder in a previous killing, but those charges were dropped in March.