The Gang Suppression Unit, in recent days, has come under sustained fire from the public for its strong-arm approach to crime fighting. Of late, there have been allegations made against the GSU concerning the use of excessive force in carrying out its job. That seemingly unconventional tactic, however, has, to an extent, proven successful, reducing […]
Following today’s sitting of the House of Representatives, Prime Minister Barrow was asked about the exchange between former Prime Minister Said Musa and GSU head Mark Flowers. The exchange has gone viral. Barrow, like others we’ve asked, refused to touch it, claiming that both Musa and Flowers have said more than enough. Interestingly, he claims […]
While things inside the House of Representatives were relatively tame today, comparatively speaking, there was a very vocal protest outside the House. About one hundred villagers travelled a long way from the southern communities of Silk Grass and Santa Cruz to draw attention to issues affecting them. The numbers were small but their voices were […]
Earlier this week, five mothers of babies who died in the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital in May 2013 received settlement from that institution. Investigations by the Pan American Health Organization have indicated that the infant deaths were the result of bacteria in the neo-natal unit, allegedly the end result of the hospital’s lack of adherence […]
The alleged killer of an elderly woman from the southern community of San Pedro, Columbia is tonight in Police custody. And he has confessed to the brutal murder of sixty-one-year-old Agripina Coc. Twenty-four-year-old Miguel Choco has been on the run since Saturday evening, but Punta Gorda Police, with the assistance of villagers, ran him aground […]
The villagers of San Pedro, Columbia and those from San Marcos played a crucial role in the capture of the alleged killer. They acted swiftly after the murder of a woman they respected and loved, and vowed to hunt down the man they believed had taken her life. Men, women and children carrying sticks, batons […]
The Gang Suppression Unit remains the object of intense public scrutiny. Recently, the elite task force came under fire from the People’s United Party which ultimately resulted in a tiff between former prime minister Said Musa and Inspector Mark Flowers. Despite a succession of commanders however, the GSU is widely viewed as a rogue faction […]
According to Flowers, a delicate balance needs to be struck between the GSU and the public in the manner in which it executes its function. Hostility, he says, needs to be minimized. Insp. Mark Flowers, Commander, Gang Suppression Unit “In doing all that we do, certainly we need equilibrium with the way we deliver […]
A series of checks in various denominations were distributed this afternoon to small business owners who will use the financial assistance as venture capital and for the expansion of their businesses. They gathered at the Radisson where Chief Executive Officer in the Ministry of Trade and Economic Development Mike Singh was on hand, along with […]
On Friday, a terse email from the Police Press Officer announced to the media that all requests for information or interviews from senior officers would have to be channelled through a new Public Relations Unit. That new policy, not surprisingly, didn’t find favour in the media. So today there was a formal, though informal introduction […]
Where the media is concerned, we are assured that using the new method information-gathering will be streamlined and much more efficient. All queries will be made to the new unit, which will then pass it on if they have it, or get it if they don’t. All requests for interviews on any particular story will […]
Last week, Tate and Lyle dropped a bombshell on cane farmers when it wrote to say that it will be buying a minimum of ten thousand tons of fair-trade sugar from the farmers. That’s a whopping fifty-five thousand tons less than they did last year. Well tonight, there is sweet news for the farmers because […]
Tonight, police say that the suspect in the brutal murder of San Pedro, Columbia elder Agripina Coc, is still at large. The manhunt for the suspected killer continues, with villagers and Police fully engaged, but with no success. Residents believe that the man who slashed and allegedly raped the elderly woman is from the same […]
The plan was reportedly to lock up the family members in the village while village leaders questioned them. But for their own safety, Punta Gorda Police decided to transport them to town. Residents believe that these family members have been assisting the fugitive, and as you’ve seen, they are not afraid to do what it […]
Last Tuesday, the plight of Uwahnie Martinez, an employee of CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank, made headlines when she was reportedly informed by her superiors at the institution that she wasn’t allowed to speak in Garifuna while at the workplace. Undoubtedly, the position of the bank raised the ire of many, particularly residents of the predominantly Garifuna […]
There is a report that is tonight causing alarm locally. It speaks of a spill in the Rio Hondo that spans Belize and Mexico, but we can confirm that the oil spill occurred in the Hondo stream near the town of Tierra Blanca in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. Nearly a mile of the Hondo […]
A recent survey involving a sample of four hundred and fifty high school students is showing an alarming use of drugs. The survey was carried out by the National Drug Abuse Control Council and the University of Belize. it shows that students are consuming serious amounts of alcohol, marijuana and in some cases cocaine. While […]
The very public war of words between former Prime Minister Said Musa and GSU Commander Mark Flowers has gone viral. It’s the big thing on the airwaves, morning shows and social media. Musa took some blows at the GSU at a political convention over the weekend, and Flowers sent some blows right back, and then […]
In early May 2013 there were thirteen reported infant deaths at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. A subsequent investigation revealed the presence of a deadly bacteria, enterobacter cloacae, in the neonatal unit. K.H.M.H. officials never took absolute responsibility for the tragic deaths in any form or fashion, and the grieving parents were left to try […]
There has been no love between the People’s United Party and the Gang Suppression Unit and tonight those bad relations have reached rock bottom. Complaints of police brutality at the hands of the Gang Suppression Unit are commonplace. In fact, since its formation in 2010, citizens have come on a frequent basis to vent their […]
Those comments made by former Prime Minister Said Musa on the political podium at Saturday’s Lake Independence convention have angered GSU Commander Mark Flowers. Now normally politicians and police keep a respectful distance from each other in public, but not this time. Flowers fired right back at Musa in an interview on Monday. He wasn’t […]
Well this afternoon, the former prime minister did come back to the media. Speaking at today’s press conference, Said Musa described Inspector Flowers’ response as an emotional attack on him. The call for the dissolution of the Gang Suppression Unit, says Musa, has long since been a policy of the People’s United Party. Said […]
The reaction from the P.U.P. was swift. The Leader of the Opposition Francis Fonseca reiterated the call for the disbandment of the Gang Suppression Unit, as well as the removal of Inspector Mark Flowers as head of the task force. The response, according to Fonseca, was virtually political in tone and rather unbecoming of a […]
And tonight’s question is: Do you believe that the GSU should be disbanded? Send your comments and responses using your SMART phones to 8686 or post your vote on our e-poll at channel5belize.com. You can also send an email with your comments to questions@channel5belize.com.
There have been new developments in the murder of sixty-one year old Agripina Coc. The mother of nine children was brutally chopped to death near her home in the village of San Pedro, Columbia on Saturday. Since then, angry residents armed with sticks and machetes have combed the surrounding bushes, convinced that the killer is […]
