The biggest cocaine bus here in Belize took place in the wee hours of this morning. Combined work of the Belize Defense Force, the Police and Central American counterparts tracked a Gulf Stream narco plane originating from Venezuela. The plane landed two miles off the Coastal Road, where work has just began on its upgrade. […]
Unlike other instances when the police have come up empty-handed—only to find remnants of burnt planes—the Gulf Stream this morning was intercepted on the illegal airstrip loaded with sixty-nine bales of cocaine, worth millions. In September 2018, police made a similar bust near Tres Leguas in Orange Walk. There, the cargo was found and two […]
Police are spread thin and under-resourced in the fight against the illicit drug trade, which uses sophisticated equipment to evade the long arms of the law. Williams says that the Anti-Narcotics Unit is also anaemic in personnel and that while a radar has been acquired, another will be required to assist the police in tracking […]
The Commissioner of Police acknowledges that every plane landing gives Belize a black eye and there have been three since the start of the year. But according to Chester Williams, based on the level of activity that is happening in drug trafficking within the region, Belize is still doing well. Chester Williams, Commissioner of […]
The excess production of cocaine in Colombia has been causing increased activity in getting the drug into the North American market, where the appetite is insatiable. It means that the transhipment of drugs through places like Belize is also expected to heighten. Williams says the department will have to step up. Chester Williams, Commissioner […]
The most recent drug bust, on record as the largest confiscation of narcotics in Belize‘s history, comes on the heels of the latest Cabinet change where Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte has been named as the substantive Minister of National Security. Many are wondering whether the seizure is a matter of happenstance given its timing and […]
Buoyed by the support of thousands at Sunday’s anti-corruption demonstration, the opposition People’s United Party is stepping up its pressure and now going to a Special Sitting of the House of Representatives next Thursday, where it plans to move a motion for a vote of no-confidence against the PM on the basis that they have […]
Aside from a motion of no confidence to be moved in the House in the coming days, the Opposition is tonight expressing outrage at reports of another secret agreement and sale of prime property in the capital which it says has the blessing of Mayor Khalid Belisle and the City Council. The P.U.P. says it […]
The United Democratic Party is hosting another National Party Council meeting this Saturday, the second in less than a month, to decide on a timeline during which interested candidates can tender their names for leadership of the U.D.P. Since former Minister of National Security John Saldivar has resigned from Cabinet and was removed as the […]
Police have released the photograph of this man, Omar Cahueque, from Corozal Town. Cahueque is on the lam, having escaped from police custody this morning in Corozal Town. The inmate is wanted for charges of Aggravated Assault with a Firearm. Police have issued an advisory to remind that it is illegal to be aiding and […]
The Police Department is facing public cynicism after a check through Interpol did not detect the long list of illegalities involving accused fraudster Lev Dermen. Assistant Commissioner of Police Marco Vidal was tasked with that investigation and is now heading an investigation into his former boss, John Saldivar. This morning, Commissioner Chester Williams stood by […]
The Commissioner of Police also defended his own reputation as the top cop. That came about when he was reminded that not too long ago, the Police Department was tasked with investigating former Minister of State for Immigration, Elvin Penner during the Won Hong Kim passport scandal. Nothing turned out from that investigation and the […]
With heightened criminal activity, personnel from the National Forensic Science Service are receiving training in forensic ballistics, toxicology and legal medicine. A team of technical experts, through the support of the Democratic Security Directorate of SICA, are here building the capacity of the unit. This morning, News Five’s Duane Moody was at the B.D.F. Shooting […]
Construction of a new five-million dollar building is about to begin on the compound of Saint John’s College in Belize City. Over the years, there has been a continuous and growing interest by students in the sciences which has rendered the current facility inadequate to meet the curiosity of the budding scientists. SJC is investing […]
The Department of Environment says that a stop order has been placed on the construction of a road in Riversdale. As we’ve been reporting this week, residents in that southern community are not happy that the road was pushed through a creek that serves as breeding grounds for a number of species of fish and […]
So, what’s next for road construction? As we’ve reported, the road would give access to lands in Riversdale where a big development is expected to be established. When we spoke with Edgar Ek today, he shared that the project developers didn’t obtain any form of permits or clearances to build the road. He explains what […]
Corozal Town Council inaugurated the installation of nineteen surveillance cameras in the town on Wednesday. Since last year, the Council and Belize Police Department have been working to set up the municipal surveillance system. The high definition cameras have been installed at key spots around the town to serve as an added layer of security […]
A results-based management system to monitor the implementation of the Economic Partnership Agreement between CARIFORUM and the E.U. is being put in place across the region to track the impacts that the E.P.A. is having on member states that have signed on to the agreement. Belize ratified the agreement in 2008 and has been able […]
International Trade Consultant Errol Humphrey has been advising the CARIFORUM Directorate and its member states on the monitoring of the Economic Partnership Agreement, known as the EPA. Humphrey says that there are a number of aspects to international trading and there are limited resources in smaller countries to deal with it. The monitoring mechanism is […]
Farmers in the villages of Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Roman in the south are up in arms. Villagers, who rely on the land to provide for their families through subsistence farming, say that a company is making moves to acquire two thousand acres of land in the area. Santa Cruz chairman Vincent Scott, says […]
According to Scott, the expected sale of the land in question and subsequent development will have an adverse effect on not only villagers of Santa Cruz, but those from San Roman and Santa Rosa. The chairmen of those villages are also upset and will join Scott in leading a protest on March fifth when parliamentarians […]
The entire world is still on edge as we continue to see the rapid spread of the new virus, COVID-19. Locally, the Ministry of Health’s surveillance efforts continue at the major ports of entries, and there is, to this date, no confirmed cases in Belize. But the situation remains changing, and everyone needs to be […]
