7 News Belize

City Hall Battles Back Against Pawn Shop
posted (October 4, 2010)
Last week we told you about the dispute between the City Council and First Stop Pawn Shop. The owner of First Stop, Gilroy Usher Jr. told 7news last week that the city council had been shorting him thousands of dollars on payroll deductions for loans he made to council employees.

Usher said it was all the product of a hustle - led by the pay mistress - an allegation which was flatly denied by the Deputy Mayor. Well today on KREM's WUB, he went even further; he said that no less than the Deputy Mayor had tried to hustle him! That got our attention - and so we put the question to an outraged Deputy Mayor. First, for context we have Usher's quite remarkable allegation:….

Voice of Gilroy Usher,Jr. on KREM WUB
"Deputy Mayor on TV said that there is absolutely no corruption at the council. He is disputing what I said and want to make the public know that first had Willoughby knows exactly what is going on at the Belize City because I personally went to Phillip and I brought up the situation to Phillip and he and I spoke about and he turn around and try to solicit money from my shop."

Phillip Willoughby, Deputy Mayor
"It's unscrupulous of this little boy to come and go public to try to mortify the character of one of the greatest politician who have ever entered into the political arena and I am telling you..."

Jules Vasquez
"You can't be talking about yourself?"

Phillip Willoughby, Deputy Mayor
"I'm the one and only Jules."

Charlene Rudon, Ag. Director Human Resources
"I am sure if was a case whereby Mr. Usher had approach the Deputy Mayor initially it is the same thing he would have done. He would have come to see me and say 'Ms. Rudon, what is the situation? Why isn't Mr. Usher receiving the monies that he suppose to' because that is the way we do things in here so for him to make those allegations against the mayor and the deputy, I think that is outrageous."

Phillip Willoughby, Deputy Mayor
"I don't have time to be taking these frivolous accusation of which is petty to this level that we encourage and entertain sinister behavior but I'll tell you though the benefits of any legal proceeding will go to the boys and girls in our sports program or the sanitation program."

Jules Vasquez
"So you will initiate legal action against him?"

Phillip Willoughby, Deputy Mayor
"I will seek my legal options my friend."

Jules Vasquez
"But I am not sure I understand why."

Phillip Willoughby, Deputy Mayor
"Here is a little boy playing with the character of one of the better politicians you ever arise or came out of the woodworks of representing the people. I'm telling you."

And while Deputy Willoughby is obviously very high on his own supply - pay mistress Shirlene Sabal is not. She feels like she's been publicly humiliated and dragged into something she has no blame in. She told us her side of the story, but again for context we first Jr.'s remarks about her:…

Gilroy Usher,Jr., Owner, First Stop Pawn Shop
"The pay mistress office at the Belize City Council is not being managed properly. It is being managed in a way that allows people at the Belize City Council to hustle, they hustle off the businesses, they hustle off the employees'."

Jules Vasquez
"Are you accepting inducements, money to allow people to over commit on their loans?"

Shirlene Sabal, Paymistress - Belize City Council
"No Jules, I stand to that because if employees come to me to sign loans for them and I check my computer to see how much loans they have, sometimes they even come to me and I cannot sign, I turn them back, but with the employees the come and they want you to sign; when you sign and they go they go with a different idea when you sign the loan for them. So of them come and offer soft drink and I say that I am not here for that; I am here to do a job and my job I will do."

Gilroy Usher,Jr., Owner, First Stop Pawn Shop
"If a person goes there that is committed to 2 loan place and wants another loan, they say well go ahead and sign it for me and hold this $50 or hold this $20 and that is what causing the problem."

Jules Vasquez
"How did you feel when he said these things about you?"

Shirlene Sabal, Paymistress - Belize City Council
"I feel hurt because then if some of the staff want to talk they can talk. Sometime they come in here and I sign it for them; they did offer me Jules, some of the staff like to talk, it will get out; 'Ms. Sabal take it, a soft drink, a biscuit, a milk' I said that it is ok and they still insist to bring the things for you. But say for giving me $50 and $20, no. I would want Mr, Usher to please stop because he don't see me taking money from nobody, he don't have any proof and I am begging him to please stop."

Patrick Tillett, Financial Controller, BCC
"If he had issues he could have come in and have a discussion with us and that's what I offered him to do to come in on the Monday for us to discuss this and he didn't come. He starts to make accusations about people and I said no I am not going to allow that."

Jules Vasquez
"He alleges that the paymistress may accept an inducement to allow someone to over extend themselves and thus box him out."

Patrick Tillett, Financial Controller, BCC
"That's not possible. He mentions that to me when we had the discussion on Saturday and I told him to bring the information he had for me to verify it. The fact that he choose to go on the radio and not come to me it means that I don't think he has any evidence of that, because I ask him, I said I am not going to quarrel with you; you said that, bring it in on Monday and we look at it. But he has not come since I had this conversation with him and he has been on the radio over and over repeating these things but he has not come in to bring the evidence so I assume that he has no evidence."

Financial Controller Tillett has taken the decision to terminate all ongoing arrangements with Usher's company First Stop. He says Usher was due a check for nine thousand dollars in deductions today….

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