We know all about armed muggings in the city - but now it's happening even in the graveyard? Last Thursday morning at 10:00 a prominent businessman and his sister were robbed in broad daylight while paying respects at their parents' grave site at the Lord Ridge cemetery. The two adults who have asked to remain anonymous say they were robbed at gunpoint by two young males, one with a rifle and one with a machete, who were sitting under a tree when they entered the cemetery, and who they believed worked there. One of the men pointed a rifle in the face of the businessman and threatened to kill him, and the pair then proceeded to rob the siblings of their belongings, which included $372.00 in cash, two cell phones, and an assortment of jewelry.
After a number of muggings like this one at the cemetery which have apparently gone unreported by the police for reasons unknown, the City Council says it's taking serious note and wants to warn the community about to be careful about safety when paying their respects to loved ones.
City Councillor with responsibility for the cemetery, Wayne Usher says the council had not been made aware of the situation by Police and now must make this latest, vile dimension to crime in the city its urgent business.
Wayne Usher, City Councillor
"I am properly disgusted on the news that I heard about the mugging, or jacking or the accosting of one of our prominent citizens who went to visit his love one at the cemetery. This is a first for me and I think it's a first for us here at the council to know that the criminal activity has now moved to another level and into another dimension meaning the cemetery where we have our love one's buried and to think that will now move there activity to that area. It's disgusting and I can recall that recently we have had killings in the cemetery and I had sort of not dismissed it but thought to the back of my mind that is was an isolated type of incident and that we won't be seeing too much of that, but now it put things in a different perspective that we now have to look at it that the cemetery has now become another area for criminal elements to do their work and that annoys me and disgusts me at the same time because of what goes on in a cemetery. It should be the last place man for you to conduct this unsavory type of activity. That's where the same criminals probably will be buried when their time comes."
Jim McFadzean
"Can the City Council improve the relationship it has with the police department in getting this type of necessary information when it deems there is a threat to society?"
Wayne Usher
"What I can say is this because of your information to me and because of this interview as a result of my next move is to call the councilor, my counterpart who is in charge of security, that's Councilor Singh, I will call him and ask for a meeting with himself and his chief of security on our side. That should happen as soon as tomorrow I will try and get that meeting tomorrow. Secondly I will ask for an interview with the police department for the department that is involve with this kind of policing and see if we can all come together to address the Lord's Ridge Cemetery and its environs to see how we can prevent this from happening again. It is even more disappointing to know that this incident of this citizen being accosted happen in broad daylight. I understand its around ten in the morning. That's even worst, so people will have fears now of even going to visit their loved one's laid to rest at the cemetery. We want to allay those fears and I am hoping that through the meeting between ourselves and with the police we can start to put things in place, even if it means getting the message out to the public for them to be aware of the environment that pervades Belize City right now. Where criminals seems to want to have their way. That when they go to the cemetery now try and do it when there is activity, when people are moving around, when others are there. They are safety in numbers."
Seven News has not been able to reach the police press office for the number of muggings reported so far at the cemetery.
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