7 News Belize

Denvo Banner Killed In Little Lemonal Vilage
posted (August 25, 2014)
Last week we told you about Denvo Banner - the 27 year old Lemonal resident who had gone missing after a victory party for the village team on August 9th. Since then his family has been looking for him all about - but on Saturday their worst fears were confirmed. Monica Bodden has the story:..

Monica Bodden reporting
Denvo Banner's six foot four frame was folded up inside this shallow grave only 3 feet across - where he was buried by his killers in his village of Lemonal - not far from the school building.

A search team of police officers and family members came across the area, just after 2 on Saturday afternoon.

Carla Casimiro - Sister of Denvo Banner
"What happened is that we did a search of the entire village way to the last spot by the pine ridge and when we were coming back, the last area we check before we reached the other side of the pine ridge because we have both side of the pine ridge and we found the body buried in a shallow hole before we reach the other side of the village."

"I didn't have any idea that we would find Denvo body in Lemonal. For me I was hoping that maybe he got lost or maybe he went hunting and got lost because he is a hunter man also. We couldn't believe that we would find his body in Lemonal in a shallow grave."

A post mortem revealed that he had been shot multiple times - including above the eye. Due to the decomposing state of his body, banner was buried later that night.

For his family, even though they are haunted by the mystery of his murder, it is a big relief that they now have closure after he had been missing for 14 days.

Carla Casimiro - Sister of Denvo Banner
"It's a big relief for us as the family because Denvo have a lot of brothers and sisters and all we were hoping for was closure for him. It hurts, but at least we have peace within our hearts that we found him and we laid his remains beside my mother's grave."

Monica Bodden
"The last people saw of him was at victory party right?"

Carla Casimiro - Sister of Denvo Banner
"Yes, a victory party in Lemonal held on the 9th August, because what happened was that the Lemonal cricket team have won the cricket competition and they had a victory party to celebrate and that was the last place everyone saw Denvo. Denvo helped a lot of people, in any way he help. He is not a lazy person. It's hard for us but we give God thanks that we found his body and that we have closure."

He was last seen at a party about half mile down the road in the village community center.

There is speculation that it could be his past coming back to haunt him; Banner had been charged for the murder of Demsley Arnold in 2007, but he was acquitted.

Jules Vasquez
"Do you think that it has anything to do with the after effects of what was the repercussion of 6 years later?"

Carla Casimiro - Sister of Denvo Banner
"I don't know and I don't want to speculate."

Notably, police found no expended shells at the crime - though Banner was shot at least three times.

Police do have a person of interest - who is a prominent gang figure from Belize City - but who has relatives in Lemonal - and has been known to frequent the area. That suspect was reportedly in the village on the night of the cricket party.

Lemonal has 150 residents; it is the first murder there in many, many years.

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