7 News Belize

Man Swindles Belize Bank of 24K!
posted (October 27, 2011)
Management at the Belize Bank Dangriga branch has uncovered a fraudulent set of bank transactions that have set the bank back in the thousands of dollars.

Six credit card cash advances totaling Twenty four thousand and Ninety dollars were carried out fraudulently, and what is most disturbing to bank officials, is that one of their own tellers was involved in the bank fraud.

The Bank's Branch Manager Michelle Guzman reported to police that the fraud was discovered on October 17th, when 31 year old Alexander Palacio, Jr., a resident of Dangriga made a cash advance of Six thousand and fifteen dollars, using a Master card issued to Franco Gentile.

The problem is that Gentile died in a traffic accident two months ago, on the Southern Highway. Alarm bells also went off after the transactions breached the bank's identification requirements, with the use of a California driver's license which appeared to be not genuine. Furthermore, video footage showed that on all six cash advances, Palacio approached the same bank teller, 24 year old Dencil Leroy Alvarez. The other five transactions took place on October 3rd, 5th, 7th, 11th, and 13th. As a result, police have charged Palacio and Alvarez with 6 counts of Obtaining Property by Deception.

Poker Celebrity Bob Bou-Nahra Gets Ready For The Biggest Game Of His Life

To the rest of the world, he is Badir Bou-Nahra, international poker celebrity, but in Belize, he's just "Bob" - businessman and co-owner of the poker room at the Princess.

But Bob's hit the big time; on Sunday he leaves Belize for Las Vegas to participate in the final of the World Series of Poker. From an original draw of close to seven thousand players he's made it to the final nine in poker's greatest tournament where the winner takes home 8.7 million US dollars.

You may have reservations about gambling - but just in terms of pure exposure, this is the biggest competitive event a Belizean has ever appeared in - and that he is appearing at the most elite level, well that makes it truly a first.

And Bou-Nahra isn't going alone. He's carrying his trusty trademark Belize cap and an entourage of over 200 Belizean supporters. We spoke to him at the Princess Poker Room this afternoon:

Badir Bou-Nahra
"The most important thing is that come November, we're taking a crowd from Belize almost 200 people plus, to support and rally for that, this is the biggest, biggest international gathering that is going to be outside Belize, for a sporting event. I was never nervous in this whole tournament and I am not going to be nervous now so I'm going to play just like it came in July I am going to play it in November."

"Jules, Poker is a fun sport and during the July tournament I was always playing for the next day, the only difference in this final table, we are going to play it for the next player that comes out. So I'll use the same strategy that I used in July."

Jules Vasquez
"Have you been studying the playing habits of the other final seven?"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"I've watched them a lot on TV and I saw a couple of their moves, but basically there is not much you can prepare for a tournament like this, except play your best when your cards are dealt. So if you be calm and cool and pick your spots and pick the players that you can go up against, then you don't have no problem cruising in and getting to where you want to get and accomplish what you want to accomplish, because it's different than other sports. Other sports you're going heads up against one person, but this one you could pick who you want to play against pending on your cards and your position."

"Jules Vasquez all the other eight players didn't get there by chance it is anybody's game and if you play your game the way you are supposed to play, anybody can win, anybody can be ninth place and anybody can be first place."

Jules Vasquez
"What is the situation like in so far as the excitement that its created locally in this big slick poker club?"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"This poker room here has been booming, there is a lot of good poker players in Belize and I've been playing against them and amongst them and I've been learning a lot from them, so I think it will give me a lot of courage."

Jules Vasquez
"In these game that you have been having against your fellow poker players, is it a situation where everybody want to say, 'well I beat Bob'."

Badir Bou-Nahra
"That's exactly what it is and they play their best to do that."

Jules Vasquez
"Will you be clinging to a specific routine, a specific wardrobe?"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"We live the last four days out of the twelve days out of the tournament exactly the same way and most probably, we are going to live hopefully two days the same way in November. So yes I am going to keep the same routine that I did and yes I am going to keep the same clothes and of course most definitely it's going to be the Belize cap, no doubt about that."

Jules Vasquez
"How hard is that choice to make, I could imagine that someone who will have the level of international television exposure as you? You are offered many endorsements to wear different sort of branded hats."

Badir Bou-Nahra
"There is no price for pride."

Jules Vasquez
"So you will........"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"There is no price for pride."

Jules Vasquez
"There is so much talk about the bracelet, the winner's bracelet. Have you seen it?"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"Of course every player have seen it, every player have touched it, everybody has taken a picture with it, and every player has an eye on it."

Jules Vasquez
"Is it something that you fantasize or dream about?"

Badir Bou-Nahra
"It's every poker player's dream to own a World Series bracelet especially the world series of poker main event. That bracelet comes with a lot of extras."

The tournament starts on Sunday, November the sixth at the Rio hotel and Casino in Vegas. It will be aired on Channel 7.

Profile: A Soldier Who's Known Misfortune

And while Bou-Nahra is on his way to international fame, tonight's profile is about Justine Swift - who's gotten her own share of fame locally. She came to our attention in 2005 when she won a scholarship to the prestigious West Point military Academy. She came back and is now a professional soldier in the BDF. But it wasn't all easy going - in tonight's profile she tells how a traumatic family event almost caused her to blow her biggest break..

The tournament starts on Sunday, November the sixth at the Rio hotel and Casino in Vegas. It will be aired on Channel 7.

Tourist Drowns

And before we leave tonight, we've got one more story:

Reliable sources have confirmed that an American Tourist drowned while he was diving somewhere near the Barrier Reef today. According to reliable sources, he started experiencing breathing problems and went down. He didn't resurface, and by the time fellow divers were able to get his head above the surface, he had already drowned.

Just before 4 p.m. this evening, his body was transported to the Radisson Marina in Belize City by the Belize Coast Guard, where a police mobile then further transported it to morgue at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital.

We cannot release his name because we cannot confirm that his family has been informed.


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