The case of Police Constable Michelle Brown, accused of the shooting death of Belize City barber Fareed Ahmad, resumed on Monday before Supreme Court Judge Colin Williams with sworn testimony given by Forensics Expert Shirley Lino. She spent much of the day detailing the court on the way in which she received sealed parcels of […]
C.E.O. of the Kolbe Foundation Virgilio Murillo told News Five today that the COVID-19 spread has been successfully contained at the Belize Central Prison. As much as one hundred and ninety-five cases of COVID-19 were recorded behind the prison walls. A lockdown was instituted at the prison and movement within the prison was highly restricted. […]
According to Murillo, instituting a lockdown played a crucial role in controlling the COVID-19 spread at the Belize Central Prison. He says that the Kolbe Foundation is working along with the courts to ensure that legal proceedings such as bail applications are done virtually. Virgilio Murillo, C.E.O., Kolbe Foundation “Obviously the twenty one day […]
The spate of gun violence in Lake Independence continues unchecked, despite the brass of the police department coming forward to address the issue in the media last Thursday. There have been several murders in that community where feuding gangs are exacting retribution in blood. On Friday night, another cab driver, who police say is also […]
Things are tense in neighborhoods gripped by gang violence – ‘extremely tense’ – according to the Commissioner of Police. Today we asked ComPol Chester Williams about what’s been happening on the ground since officers were sent into the area when the spate of violence erupted last week. Williams says that he and the mediators were […]
A dispute among relatives over a stolen cell phone has led to the death of Renicle Hemmans, who was fatally stabbed by his niece on Saturday night. The young lady remains in police custody awaiting the D.P.P.’s instructions as to whether charges will be brought against her. News Five’s Duane Moody reports. Duane Moody, […]
A Trial Farm resident was shot multiple times at home on Sunday evening. Police say that two men went to buy weed from Elroy Arnold when one of them pulled out a gun and shot him. Arnold was reportedly hit in his chest, back and both legs. ACP Joseph Myvett shares the details of this […]
Police made a forty-pound weed bust on Sunday afternoon. Cops in the north were called to an area in Chan Chen Village in Corozal that’s known for illicit activities. Polices say one taxi operator and another man have been arrested and charged for the eighteen parcels. They are now trying to determine who the other […]
Two men are lucky to be alive after being involved in a road traffic accident on Sunday night around eight-thirty in Santa Elena Town. George Velasquez and Jason Linarez were on a motorcycle when they crashed head-on into a taxi that was making a left turn. The men on the cycle sustained minor injuries but […]
From Friday night to this evening, sixteen COVID-19 related deaths have been reported. Friday saw the largest number with ten deaths on record, seven males and three females. The Office of the Director of Health Services says that not all these persons died on Friday. On Saturday an additional three deaths were recorded, two females […]
In the wee hours of Saturday, police and fire fighters responded to a fire at the corner of Meighan and Vasquez Avenues in Belize City. Six members of the Budna family, including children, luckily escaped with their lives after the fire quickly engulfed their home. An investigation suggests that the fire was a result of […]
A public consultation on the proposed development of a fourth cruise terminal in Belize has been met with serious concerns and objection from the tourism and environmental sectors. On Thursday evening, the Department of the Environment, along with Chamberlain Consultancy and Nextera, on behalf of Waterloo, held a virtual meeting with experts regarding the proposed […]
Whereas a cruise terminal is constructed adjacent to a port, Dr. Chamberlain-Miranda points to other countries and tourism destinations where such facilities coexist harmoniously. The project, once given the green light is set to be completed by 2023. According to Chamberlain-Miranda, Belize will be required to have docking facilities on land in order to do […]
The Belize Coalition to Save Our Natural Heritage, a consortium of environmental N.G.O.s, has written to Prime Minister John Briceño highlighting a number of environmental concerns with the proposed development. Chief among those issues is the lack of an adequate reason to justify the dumping of dredge material in the area just beyond the barrier […]
The public consultation held on Thursday night proceeded as scheduled, despite a Chief Executive Officer for Sustainable Development not having been appointed. According to the Coalition, the C.E.O. is also the chair of the National Environmental Appraisal Committee, NEAC, which is an integral part of the approval process. While Bood applauds the new government for […]
The Belize Tourism Industry Association, from an industry perspective, has also raised concerns about the proposed development, and the possible environmental impact that it will have in the area of Port Loyola in Belize City and at sea, just outside of the barrier reef. The emphasis, according to Executive Director John Burgos, should be on […]
With three proposed cruise terminals to be constructed in the same geographic location within the vicinity of Belize City, namely: Port Coral, Port of Magical Belize and Port Loyola Cruise Port, B.T.I.A. is saying that Belize will not be able to handle the saturation of visitors disembarking on its shores. That says, Burgos, will not […]
The merger of the Belize Bank Limited and the Bank of Nova Scotia limited is a done deal. This was first confirmed via a cabinet press release two days ago. On Thursday, however, the Central Bank of Belize issued a press statement in which it states that the board was guided in its decision by […]
The Briceño Administration, fourteen days after taking office, has unveiled its strategy to control the further spread of COVID-19 in the country. The way forward includes a curfew which commences on Saturday. It will be from nine p.m. to five a.m. for an initial period of twenty-one days. What the new plan of action does […]
The Ministry of Health also plans to hire additional human resources such as nurses, doctors, specialist, health staff, support staff for deployment to all regional and community hospitals. Health and Wellness Minister, Michel Chebat says that one of the key areas his ministry will focus on is the purchase of medical and pharmaceutical supplies such […]
The Ministry of Health and Wellness will immediately implement and scale up the use of rapid testing in all district hospitals for symptomatic patients and close contacts. Minister Chebat says that testing sites outside of the hospital will be established in urban communities. Two mobile swabbing teams for rural communities will be created to better […]
According to Minister Chebat, under former Minister of Health Pablo Marin and Prime Minister Dean Barrow, there was no clear plan to address the COVID-19 pandemic. He says that there was no clear testing strategy, revealing that there is a backlog of more than two thousand samples waiting to be processed at the Central Medical […]
Minister Chebat made the revelations as Director of Health Services, Doctor Marvin Manzanero sat at the head table. Under the Barrow Administration, Doctor Manzanero was the expert leading the charge against COVID-19, but during today’s press briefing, he took a backseat. Doctor Manzanero, however, was asked about Chebat’s description of the former administration’s COVID-19 response. […]
On Wednesday night, the Belize Medical and Dental Association met to discuss the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the healthcare system, in public and private facilities across the country. The situation is grave as the number of cases that require hospitalization and urgent medical attention is overwhelming the system. Doctor Fernando […]
With the healthcare system stretched to capacity, there is a real fear that with not enough spaces to accommodate COVID-19 victims, the mortality rate will continue to climb and deaths will be recorded outside of the facilities where people will be waiting to seek medical attention. Dr. Fernando Cuellar, Internist, Belize Medical Associates “There’s […]
