A funeral-goer was executed in Belize City on Saturday, moments before boarding a bus that would have transported him and other mourners to a memorial service for their loved one. Giovanni Augustine was standing in front of the Parham residence on Curassow Street when he came under assault from someone he knew. His alleged killer […]
Following the murder of Giovanni Augustine on Saturday afternoon, police on mobile patrol on Faber’s Road Extension pursued a pickup truck that caught their attention. The vehicle was being followed until it came to a halt on Madam Liz Avenue. When the officers approached the driver, they discovered that he was Darrel “Tutsi” Usher, son […]
Police are looking for a man they believe can assist with their investigation into the murder of Ian Westby on Sunday in Belize City. Westby had left family members and gone with another man near Curasow street, but was found shortly afterwards dead in a vehicle. ASP Fitzroy Yearwood, Communications Director, Belize Police Department […]
A woman is in police custody tonight awaiting a charge of murder, following the stabbing death of Justo Martinez which occurred over the weekend at the Adjacency Zone in the Toledo District. According to police, the bus operator and her common-law husband were at an establishment in that area when they got into a misunderstanding. […]
There was another shooting over the weekend that has left resident of Zericote Street hospitalized. The attack on Michael Young took place several hours into the nightly curfew and investigators are yet to determine what he was doing outside of his home after nine p.m. He told police that he had just arrived at his […]
The United Democratic Party today expressed its alarm over what they term the “explosion” of murders and other violent crimes around the country, particularly in Belize City. The party is calling for the resignation, or removal, of the Minister of Home Affairs. Kareem Musa, and the CEO in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Kevin Arthurs. […]
Mind Health Connect Belize, a local organization that spreads awareness on the importance of treating mental health illnesses is partnering with the Ministry of Health and KHMH to provide counseling services to health care workers inside KHMH’s COVID Unit. Newly appointed CEO at KHMH spoke about the need for such a service as the nation […]
And while the hospital is looking after the mental health of its overworked health care workers in the COVID Unit, CEO Cansino also has to address the need for additional staffing at the hospital. It’s a drawn out crisis that is becoming more of a burden on the daily running of the hospital as an […]
The COVID unit at the KHMH is seeing a slight decrease in the number of COVID positive patients needing to be hospitalized. It is a silver lining that CEO Cansino says the hospital will continue to monitor. Chandra Cansino, CEO, KHMH “We have seen, as you know, as they say you have to look […]
We also asked about the five hundred thousand dollars the Government of Belize reportedly owes to the KHMH for renovations done to the COVID unit. Minister Chebat says the documents need to be reviewed by Cabinet. CEO Cansino says KHMH already has a commitment from the Ministry of Finance. Michel Chebat, Minister of Health […]
Spokesmen for three Mayan communities in the Toledo District say they are not interested in holding their land based on customary land tenure. They say such a system is having unintended effects, for example, preventing them from getting bank loans. In 2010 the Supreme Court reaffirmed the Maya people’s rights to land in the Toledo […]
While Belizeans may be breathing a sigh of relief that no-movement Sundays and 7 pm curfew has been lifted, the country is yet to see the results of this two week attempt to control the spread of COVID-19. We have also yet to see the peak in the current wave of cases, spurred on by […]
Minister Chebat was asked what impact– if any– he feels those against vaccinations are having on the public response. He said while they may be vocal, most Belizeans understand why they need to get vaccinated and are getting their jabs. He also spoke about break-through cases and the data being gathered on these. Michel […]
In international COVID news, a medical study completed this month has found that even people who were never sick enough to need hospitalization have an increased risk of developing blood clots and heart disease. According to Bloomberg news, the chances of a heart attack, stroke, or other major cardiovascular event in the first 12 months […]
Cuellar says COVID survivors, particularly those who have had to be hospitalized, should have frequent exams of their heart and lungs to determine if the disease has created any lasting damage to their body. Dr. Fernando Cuellar, Internist “When you have the disease, you certainly have blood clots. They call them micro or small […]
Over the weekend, news circulated on social media that CEO in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Dr. Lesbia Guerra had resigned from her post just eleven months into her appointment. Some comments suggested there was a conflict with the minister or that Guerra was among the candidates being considered to be appointed as Director of […]
Belize and the wider Caribbean are holding a series of meetings with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to discuss special vulnerability and debt relief. Belize as a low-lying coastal nation, also sits in the path of hurricanes and other natural phenomena such as flooding caused by climate change. And over the past […]
A police constable attached to the Gang Intelligence, Investigation and Interdiction Unit, or the GI3, for short, is hospitalized tonight after being shot by fellow law enforcement officers on Thursday evening in Orange Walk. The incident which came on the heels of a fender-bender in Corozal Town sometime earlier that evening, raises more questions than […]
The Belize Police Department, however, provides a very different account of what took place. According to a report issued earlier today, PC Dawson failed to stop at the vehicle checkpoint that was set up outside of Orange Walk Town. When he floored the vehicle, officers immediately gave chase and an exchange of gunfire ensued. They […]
A new statutory instrument to address the surge in COVID-19 cases was introduced by the Ministry of Health and Wellness on Thursday evening. The fifty-five page document succeeded an appearance of health officials on government’s bi-weekly Up 2 The Minute social media broadcast during which Dr. Julio Sabido broke down the new measures. Those incoming […]
According to Dr. Sabido, there will be a slight relaxing of the nightly curfew, but only if the daily positivity rate decreases by November first. Dr. Julio Sabido, Ministry of Health & Wellness “Churches are allowed to open and to open with fifty percent seating capacity, fully vaccinated and observing all public health measures. […]
The Ministry of Rural Transformation, Community Development, Labor and Local Government is moving to modernizes and standardize the trade license regime. This week’s Cabinet brief noted that Cabinet approved the implementation of these reforms. To bring some clarity about how these reforms will affect businesses, News Five spoke to CEO in the Ministry, Valentino Shal […]
This week’s Cabinet brief also noted that for the first time villages will be able to charge for trade licenses. But, in a time of economic hardship when small and micro businesses are already feeling a financial pinch, the concern is that such a reform will bring added strain to small and micro businesses in […]
The chairman of one of those large villages the CEO mentioned told News Five that he supports the Trade Licenses amendment. He says he sees how it can bring much needed resources to the community for development and even employment. We spoke to Ladyville Chairman Bernard Bennett over the phone today. On the Phone: […]
We also asked CEO Shal about the rebound the rice industry in Southern Belize is currently experiencing. Recent images show truck loads of rice being transported from villages in Southern Belize to the rice mill in Big Falls. It’s a promising sign for an industry that CEO Shal says has been neglected for the last […]
