Bandits with AK47s attack Belmopan resort

A large group of tourists, not to mention the nation’s tourism industry, remain in shock tonight following a brazen attack at the entrance of the nation’s capital. Banana Bank Lodge is located along the Belize River, less than a mile from the steps of the National Assembly. But on Friday night, the owners, guests, and employees felt like they were a million miles from civilisation when four men armed with high powered weapons held the resort hostage for more than an hour, terrifying their victims and stealing their valuables. News Five’s Jacqueline Woods has just returned from Belmopan and files the following report.

John Carr, Owner, Banana Bank Lodge
?There were seven of us in the restaurant just eating there like a normal night and then I saw my wife come in the door in a distressed mood with two guys with AK47 type looking rifles and I thought, oh, oh this is something very serious. The guy beside me says, what is going on? And I said, we are being robbed. And it was almost like a dream or something, but it was very real.?

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting
Sometime between seven and eight on Friday night, four bandits dressed in what appeared to be khaki outfits and armed with high powered weapons stormed into the Banana Bank Lodge and held up its management, staff, and guests. The resort owner John Carr, who had a gun placed just under his neck, says the man who appeared to be the leader of the group demanded money.

John Carr
?The story from the very get go was mas dinero, mas dinero, mas dinero. They didn?t seem to be interested in hurting anybody really, but you always they knew that they could. They did not molest or make awkward advances towards the girls … it was all about money.?

The frightened victims started handing the robbers their cash and jewellery.

John Carr
?Well I emptied my money in my wallet and I gave it to him as did some other people. So yes, they got some money and they took rings and cell phones and watches and stuff like that, so they were collecting. They had three collection points: in the restaurant, in my office, and then in my bedroom in my house. So they seem to know exactly where to go to find stuff.?

As the robbery was in progress, another group of tourists arrived at the resort. The Canadian family of ten was in the company of their friend and driver forty-two year old Ernesto Lewis. Lewis, walking into the resort?s main office, did not sense anything was wrong as he approached the receptionist. Lewis says even after one of the gunmen approached him, he thought the man was an employee.

Ernesto Lewis, Victim, Hold up
?But to my knowledge I thought they having a meeting cause they sit around, you know, so quiet. So I continue walk, which was about three, fours steps when I saw somebody arrive with a gun. So I look on him and say, ?Mein, you can?t do that. Your boss can?t have you with dem big gun and I have dem tourists.? And he talk inna Spanish and I noh talk Spanish. Somehow a second person come out and he come with gun and so I turn my back to them and I tell the people, ?here what, whatsoever them people say, just do it.??

?Then eventually a young lady from the Banana Bank Lodge Resort and start to interpret and tell them fi lift up their hands and just obey what they have to say. Then they gone inna my pocket, took away my money, my cell phone, strip the people them, take their rings, gold chain, whatever they could take, they just take from them.?

Both Lewis and Carr say the bandits appeared to be in a rush to get what they could and disappear.

John Carr
?They had been here close to an hour and a half and I believe and I think they fell the pressure. They know that the country is loaded with cell phones and they could anticipate that something was going to happen, they can?t stay forever. And I think?the older gentleman that seemed to be the leader seemed to be about forty-two years old and he wasn?t upstairs when they were robbing my house and he told the others, ?vamos, vamos, horita, horita, vamos.? So he was in a hurry to get out of here because I think he felt that his time was getting close … And they decided that they were going to drive and that?s when they took Mister Lewis.?

The men had asked one question, ?Who is the owner of the vehicle with the lights on??

Ernesto Lewis
?Who dah the driver of the vehicle weh deh out deh with the lights on.? Well I refused to answer because I say I noh wah answer this. So they ask a second time, which in a lady interpret. They ask me, for who the vehicle. I tell ah dah for me the vehicle and one ah them say, ?Well you wah drive we from yah.? I say, ?Okay then, no problem,? and I begin to walk. But behind my head I done know that I noh di ker unu no way. If I take unu what unu wah do me when I ker unu. And then I get about a hundred feet away from them, which was right next to the corner of a building, and I just sprint. And by the time I sprint they pull the trigger.?

Lewis says as one of the bullets caught him in his right hand he continued to run for his life.

Ernesto Lewis
?Well I run; I nevah look backway. It dark, I jump a hedge, I run about, I noh know how much more steps I make when I find a big, big hole and I jump inna it and dah there I stay. I stand up inna the hole and they not even see me, because it look like dah wah swimming pool they di build, and dah in there I stay. I stay in there for I noh know how long. If I say two minutes I di tell a lie, if I say thirty-five I di tell a lie because I noh know how long I stayed in there.?

Lewis stayed down until he heard several gunshots and then voices.

Ernesto Lewis
?I hear pow, pow and then I gone down lower. I lay down flat on my belly and I say well definitely I dead now. But like couple seconds later I hear somebody holler, ?This is the police.? Then I got real comfortable and I jumped and said, ?Hello, this dah Ernesto Lewis.? And then the man said, ?Come with your hands up.? And then I lift up my hands above my head, but the blood come down, still di pour.?

Today Belmopan City Mayor Anthony Chanona spoke about the incident and its effects on the local tourism industry.

Anthony Chanona, Belmopan Mayor
?It affects us negatively and it?s one for concern because the city of Belmopan is just in the fledging stage in trying to develop a tourism product and we depend on resorts like the Roaring River project, Banana Bank, Pook?s Hill and other areas. Therefore when we have incidences like these acts, it affects us and it will affect our economy. So we are concerned and we would like to try to get more involved in a solution.?

Carr says he plans to strengthen security at the lodge. As for Lewis, he hopes to regain strength in his hand, but the prognosis is not good.

John Carr
?Sometimes I think on a local crime scene I think that we could be doing a better job on the local crime scene. This is a whole different element, it takes a different approach. In other words, we have to deal with border surveillance. That takes budgets and money and a different sort of an effort. But these criminals now, these guerrilla criminals with automatic weapons are one mile from the capital city limits and they are thirty-five miles inland. They have some good trails; they know how to get here and how to get things done. So that has to be addressed and it?s gonna take money and people to do it.?

Ernesto Lewis
?Somehow they say that it might be crippled, but I went to Belize City and the doctor said it?s splintered too fine, they cannot replace it back together, so I will be struggling with arthritis and stuff like that.?

Lewis?s friends have decided to stay in Belize and continue with their vacation on one of the cayes. Jacqueline Woods for News Five.

According to resort owners, most lodges do not keep cash on hand as transactions are usually conducted by credit card or cheque.