But first we turn from crime to politics. It's official, Interim PUP Leader Mark Espat has gotten almost unanimous support of all the party's constituency leaders. On Saturday the Northern Caucus met in Orange Walk Town and unanimously resolved to endorse the Espat as the next Party Leader of the PUP.
So, Espat has now gotten endorsements from all four caucuses of the party and declarations of divisional support from 30 of the party's 31 constituency leaders - with the notable exception of Belize Rural North - which is supporting its candidate, Arthur Saldivar.
The 30 of 31 is as close to unanimous support as any prospective PUP party leader has ever enjoyed. But Espat remains a prospective leader. That's because he still has not thrown his name into the hat - meaning he has not been formally nominated for leader - and this is presumably because he has not decided whether he will offer himself as leader. Wednesday is the deadline for nominations.
Best indications are that he's not just playing hard to get; Espat has told all senior members of the party that there must be a clear plan for the party to get over its financial difficulties before he takes up the mantle. As we've reported, the opposition's debt currently runs into the millions of dollars.
And that's where Espat's would-be opponent Arthur Saldivar comes in. On Friday, he burst forward with more than a few explosive indictments of his party's interim leader, most notably, he claimed that Espat had struck a deal with the Ashcroft Alliance to secure financing for the party - a claim which Espat flatly denied.
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