The Gang Suppression Unit has been making news this week for breaking down doors - but while those units were busy in the city - in Belmopan - other members of the unit were using pen and paper instead of stunners and MT-9 assault rifles.
The event was a special training for the GSU facilitated by a Gang Expert from Salvador, Walter Lazo. He's Interpol's point man in the region and now he's signed unto a one year programme for Capacity Building of the GSU and related units.
This was the first week, an intensive first principles course.
Here's more from the police training academy in Belmopan:…
Cornel George Lovell, CEO Police and Public Safety Ministry
"With the help and facilitation from Walter Lazo I know that you are now betted not just to deal with, the gangs that we
are familiar with here in Belize but also to deal with those transnational gangs that may migrate to our country and operate in Belize. We know that as we speak there are elements of MS-13 and MS-18 here in Belize."
Walter Laszo, Reg. Officer - Interpol - El Salvador
"This week we trying to include the formation and one part is the topic of training in the subject of strengthening the units. We are doing this with a pilot plan from the regional office for Belize and under the understanding that it's not the only training that will be provided to the Gang Suppression Unit. We have a work plan for the year in this training topic where we want to strengthen their abilities - train them in use of best practices and techniques that are most effective in the combat of organize crime."
ASP Mark Vidal, Officer Commanding GSU
"it encompasses of areas to deal with the gang problem, it talks about intelligence led policing the origin of the gangs in particular the Central American Gangs the Mara Salvatrucha and the Mara Dieceocho and its origins, its evolution and the best practices that are carried out in Central America that we can also use in order to fight this problem."
Devin Sambula, Detective Constable GSU
"I learn a lot about the origins of many Hispanic gangs that resulted from the immigration and the civil war area in El Salvador. Also we learnt about how to carefully and properly investigate the gang structure because the mandate of the Gang Suppression Unit is to dismantle gang structures so Mr. Walter taught us how mainly to dismantle a structure through the base of the gang - attack its resources."
El Salvador has the second highest murder rate in the region at 71, just behind Honduras's 72.8…..
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