Mexican newspapers are reporting a major bust of precursor used to manufacture synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine or crystal meth. The precursor is said to originate from Belize. According to the reports, the four hundred litres of precursor, about one hundred and five gallons, were seized in an area between Quintana Roo and Campeche in […]
Seventy-two year old McKesson Garrett remains hospitalized recovering from injuries sustained when he was attacked by four vicious Rottweilers. Garnett went to visit his friend, Leroy Woods, who lives at mile four on the Phillip Goldson Highway. But the friendly visit almost turned deadly for Garrett who was attacked when he was welcomed by Woods […]
A candlelight vigil for the safe return of Hattieville Chairman, Kevin Carcamo will be held tonight, five days after his mysterious disappearance behind Freetown Sibun. Carcamo vanished while reportedly returning from work on a survey line within the densely forested area on Sunday and, despite all efforts by authorities to locate him, hasn’t been seen […]
Municipal elections are set for early next year, and already mass party machinery is cranking up for the election of slates in all municipalities. It doesn’t exactly have the fever of general elections, but it is a big deal, since these elections will be seen as a measuring stick, a barometer of sorts. And so […]
One issue that the People’s United Party is tackling is the draconian gun laws. The leader of the opposition says that the party has written and submitted an amendment to the Firearms Act to G.O.B., but has received no response. Francis Fonseca says that the Firearms Act in itself is not a bad thing, but […]
On Thursday morning, three families were displaced by separate fires in Belize City. Today, Jenise Ramirez and her two children, ages six and four, received some assistance courtesy of Salvation Army. Ramirez’s house and its contents were destroyed in the blaze on Berkley Street that was started by her eldest son who was playing with […]
Coming up, we’ll have a report on the fatal traffic accident… But in the court, a twenty-three-year-old man along with his sixteen year old girlfriend, who is originally from Honduras, were both remanded into custody today when they appeared before the Belize City Magistrate’s Court. They were both charged for their alleged involvement in […]
Last September corruption came to light when the Penner immigration scandal was first exposed. This involved the corruption in the issuance of Belizean passports to individuals who did not qualify. In the case of South Korean national, Won Hong Kim, there was evidence that he did not meet even the basic requirements, however still obtained […]
For students interested in creative arts, a summer camp hosted by the Ministry of Education is the perfect setting to engage in the many facets of the arts. This year the number of participants grew to well over a hundred students who flocked to the Bliss Center for Performing Arts for three weeks of fun […]
There was another camp taking place, but outside the city where at risk youths were engaged in various activities. News Five’s Isani Cayetano files a report. Isani Cayetano, Reporting At the Youth Hostel this morning, a summer camp for at risk teens concluded after several weeks of training in various disciplines. Among the many […]
Elvin Penner walks….A decision was handed down today in the case of Elvin Penner, who facilitated the issuance of a passport to South Korean fugitive, Won Hong Kim. The former government minister admitted in an email that he, “Personally went with Kim to the passport office to see to it that he would get proper […]
The Won Hong Kim scandal erupted in September 2013. The catalyst was a Belizean passport issued to Kim. Kim received Belizean nationality and his passport while he languished in a jail cell in Taiwan. That was ten months ago, and the infamous passport has yet to return to the shores of the jewel. Recently Minister […]
P.U.P. Leader Francis Fonseca got the news about Penner shortly after the former Minister of State walked out the door of the Belmopan Magistrate Court, indicted now only by public opinion. He told News Five that it is a bitter disappointment, a travesty and a sad day for Belize. But Fonseca concedes that while it […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow, on more than one occasion, has expressed his doubt that Elvin Penner could be successfully prosecuted, maintaining the difference between factual guilt and legal guilt. Attorney-General Wilfred Elrington has followed suit, asserting that the reason the D.P.P. has not initiated a public prosecution against Penner is that she knows it wouldn’t […]
P.U.P. Leader, Francis Fonseca, himself a former Attorney-General, also took issue with the comments of Elrington, but like the outcome of the case, he says they weren’t surprising. He says Elrington was simply reflecting the belief and intent of the U.D.P. government. Francis Fonseca, P.U.P. Leader “The Attorney-General had absolutely no business offering his […]
There have been four fires in the past sixteen days in the Belize District that have unfortunately been caused by children playing with lighters. The incidents have prompted the Fire Department to urge parents to keep matches and lighters away from children. This morning in separate areas of the City, fires swept through three houses. […]
Prior to responding to the fire on Berkley Street, the National Fire Service had to respond to another fire, this time in the Conch Shell Bay Area. Smith also had on display the various lighter tools to sensitize the public on items that should be kept out of the reach of children. Orin Smith, […]
Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie continues to be the man in the hot seat, and the man under fire in the Penner immigration scandal. He did not hand over the file which contains all evidence compiled so far in the investigation. That effectively squashed COLA’s case today setting Penner free of the charges. The Commissioner […]
The reaction of the crowd outside the courtroom was immediate. As Elvin Penner and his family walked to a parked vehicle, there were cries of ‘thief’ and ‘you should be in jail.’ But beneath the anger of those assembled outside is also a deep disappointment in the system, and a belief that the outcome of […]
On June sixteenth, Justice Michelle Arana ordered the government of Belize and SATIIM to engage in mediation where the exploration by US Capital Energy is concerned – mediation, but with no guidelines or determined outcome, which seems like somewhat of a hollow victory for SATIIM. Today, Executive Director Greg Ch’oc told us that the mediation […]
If you’re the driver of a late model government ride, especially a Toyota Hilux, you may want to be careful where you park. That’s because there are some brazen thieves at work in the nation’s capital Belmopan. At least three government vehicles have been stolen in recent weeks. First it was a Toyota Hilux from […]
There was a fatal road traffic accident today in the Orange Walk District. Sometime around two o’clock this afternoon, two vehicles traveling in opposite directions along the Yo Creek Road collided into each other. Reports are that Nadir Muñoz, the driver of a grey sports utility vehicle, which was being used to vend corn tortillas, […]
A case management conference was held at the Caribbean Court of Justice this morning in a suit brought against the governments of Belize and Trinidad & Tobago by Jamaican gay rights activist Maurice Tomlinson. On May eighth, the CCJ handed down a decision granting Tomlinson special leave to challenge the immigration acts of both countries. […]
Belize City businesswoman Heidi Andrades appeared unrepresented in magistrates’ court today where she pleaded guilty to a fisheries offense after being busted with thirty-nine undersized lobster tails at her restaurant. On Thursday, July tenth, fisheries officer Maurice Westby visited Admiral Restaurant, located at the Municipal Airstrip, and conducted a search of the premises. There, he […]
Magistrate Sherigne Rodriguez this morning found a San Pedro family of four not guilty of the charge of possession of six rounds of unlicensed ammunition. This matter came to public prominence because of the unpopular gun laws that require automatic detention of anyone charged. The Nasser family: Jaziba, Nazim and their two children Jamil and […]
