A tour guide from the Belize District and his wood carver cousin were charged with incest today following allegations that they both had sexual relations with a fourteen year old female relative. The pair appeared before Magistrate Margaret McKenzie and were remanded to Hattieville Prison until trial on December ninth. One of the men was […]
It’s official: National Transport buses will not be allowed to continue operating. But the Novelo brothers aren’t taking the decision by the Transport Board lying down. Today there were two press conferences, one called by the Board and the other by the brothers. News Five was both and brings you the latest in the continuing […]
It is sure be one of the highlights at tomorrow’s meeting of the House of Representatives at the National Assembly in Belmopan: the G.S.T. or Goods and Services Tax. By the Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance Jose Coye’s own admission, the G.S.T. is VAT, Valued Added Tax, just with another name. This […]
There is no doubt that Belize has been lucky this year avoiding all the devastating hurricanes that raged around us. Now, in addition to that narrow escape we also find that our neighbours’ misfortune is giving us an economic boost. I’m speaking of the citrus industry, where the continued effect of hurricanes–the latest being Wilma–has […]
Today the Protected Areas Conservation Trust gave out a record eleven grants for projects designed to help conserve, protect, and sustain Belize’s natural resources. Almost three hundred and sixty-five thousand dollars has been earmarked for the organisations, which got their first instalments today. News Five was at the Radisson and spoke with some of the […]
Today, The Belize National Meteorological Service and the Mainstreaming Adaptation to Climate Change Project officially launched “Concepts and Issues in Climate Change: A Handbook for Caribbean Journalists.” The publication is intended to inform, educate, and warn journalists of the danger posed by the extreme weather events that the region is currently experiencing and the long […]
Belizean artist and Punta rock musician Pen Cayetano may live in Germany, but every year he makes the pilgrimage home to Belize to join in the Garifuna Settlement Day celebrations. But while scenes of Garinagu life, culture, and spirituality are the main themes in his paintings, this year he is also exploring a little of […]
They say that the darkest night comes just before the dawn… and tonight thousands of Belizean commuters are hoping that the inconvenience they experienced today will be followed very soon by the settlement of a major conflict in the bus industry. I spent most of the morning and early afternoon camped out at the bus […]
Late this evening the Transport Board was meeting in Belize City and moments ago Chairman Cedric Borland took a short break to inform the press of what was going on inside. Cedric Borland, Chair, Transport Board ?Those buses running without a valid road service permit and that covers a wide spectrum because we do have […]
The man accused of the burglary of Novelo’s Bus Company has pleaded guilty. Twenty year old Leon Cain, a cashier at the company, was accused of burglary but copped a guilty plea to the lesser charge of handling stolen goods. Magistrate Dorothy Flowers sentenced Cain to a two thousand dollar fine or in default a […]
A young Belize City man has been charged with a string of violent robberies against women. Eighteen year old Kareem Smith appeared Tuesday before Magistrate Margaret McKenzie where he pled not guilty to three separate allegations of robbery, one count of burglary, and one count of wounding. The accusations against Smith date back to August […]
Four policemen convicted of theft last month have appealed those convictions to the Supreme Court. Vladimir Ortega, Jesus Dominguez, Filomeno Badillo, and Cornelio Andueza were found guilty in Magistrate’s Court of taking a hundred dollars from the cash register of Belize City grocer Dennis Chow. The incident, which occurred in March of 2002, was caught […]
Some younger viewers may be unaware that it was not long ago that Belize didn’t have any real new car dealers. In those days you went to an agent who represented one of the auto manufacturers who would then order you a vehicle that might arrive in a few months. Of course back then only […]
The Parents Association for Children with Special Needs is an organization recently formed by those who know just how challenging it is for a differently-abled person to get by in Belize. PACSN relies heavily on community support to fund its programmes and today took the opportunity to get a head start on the sale of […]
Put in the best possible light, the massive government brokered deal to create a monopoly bus company was an overambitious effort that left the D.F.C. and Atlantic Bank badly wounded, consumers with second rate service, and the remnants of the company surviving on a day to day basis. Tonight the future of that struggling but […]
As if they didn’t have enough to worry about, over the weekend Novelo’s Bus Company was the victim of a burglary. According to police reports, sometime Sunday night or early Monday morning the company’s safe was broken into and twelve thousand dollars was removed. Cops suspected an inside job and they searched the residence of […]
Three people reported missing at sea since Sunday afternoon are safe after a day and night on the water. According to police, the twenty-five foot boat that Ron Hardwick, Linda Hudge, and Armstrong Ortiz set off in from Long Caye at Lighthouse Reef, ran out of gas and for the past two days the trio […]
A vehicle stolen from Belize City has showed up sixty-five miles away on the Western Highway, along with the man accused of stealing it. It was the first big catch for the four day old police checkpoint at Red Creek in the Cayo District. The drama unfolded around three this morning when according to authorities, […]
Belize’s love affair with Chinese food dates back to the 1960’s and 70’s when dining out was a rarity and if you did visit a restaurant it was likely to be named Hong Kong, Canton, or Golden Dragon. Today, of course we seem to take most of our meals away from home and the cuisine […]
You have four days to get ready for Saturday night in Belize City when the Heavenlies Gospel Band presents Spiritual Revolution Chapter Five. The concert will feature Jamaican artists Chevelle Franklyn, Sherwin Gardner, and a host of local singers and musicians. According to the artists and producers, the concert is for the entire family and […]
Belize and countries all over the world each year sign dozens of treaties, proclamations, protocols and conventions. Most are immediately filed and forgotten, useful only as propaganda at the time of signing. But there is one international agreement whose framers actually believe its implementation ought to be monitored, evaluated, and even critiqued. That document is […]
With so many recent hikes in the cost of imported petroleum products, we were beginning to think that the laws of economic gravity had abandoned us. Not so. Having spiked at ten dollars per gallon on October eighteenth, the price of premium gasoline has, as of yesterday, retreated to nine twenty-six. Regular is down seventy-nine […]
In weekend crime the big news is that… there isn’t much news… and yes, it’s a pleasure to report. According to police there was an incident in which a sixteen year old suffered a knife wound during a fight with her boyfriend, and another teenager was arrested for an unlicensed firearm… but that’s about it. […]
And while we are not reporting on any new violent crime, the judicial process continues to move slowly on past offences. Today the murder trial of police officer Sheldon Arzu was scheduled to open in the Supreme Court but was postponed due to the introduction of new evidence by the prosecution. Prosecutor Kamar Henry told […]
While one trial has been postponed, another was concluded today with a verdict of guilty. Thirty year old Fernando Elijio was convicted of robbery by Chief Magistrate Herbert Lord and sentenced to five years in Hattieville Prison. On the night of January sixteenth Elijio placed a gun to the head of Michelle Davis on Central […]
