7 News Belize

Police find Grenade Lying Around In Ghost Town
posted (September 8, 2014)
Police took another grenade off the streets on Saturday - it is the ninth grenade event in six years. Deputy Commander of Eastern Division Edward Broaster got information of where the dangerous explosive was stashed. 7News came upon the scene shortly after,. Jules Vasquez has the report:..

Jules Vasquez reporting
Senior Superintendent Edward Broaster received information that led him to this abandoned house on Banak Street. He responded immediately, still in his Saturday slippers, and here he is trying to call the BDF Bomb Expert.

His information told him to look in the overgrowth under these stairs, which is where Broaster took us, as he unearthed the deadly explosive. It was tucked inside the domed cover of a coffee cup.

He removed the cover, and took out an object tightly wrapped in a black plastic bag.

It was actually double wrapped in the bag, which ever so slightly heightened the tension for this report since Broaster is no explosives expert.

And then, finally, the big reveal, the now familiar looking British military grenade, L109A1, this one with an electrical tape holding down the safety clip, and a quite corroded protective cap.

After a brief examination, Broaster rolled it back into the plastic bag, and stuffed it back into the cup for the scenes of crime team.

Looking at it lying there so innocuously, it is a small miracle that no child came along and toyed with it.

Of course, no one know how long it was there.

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster, 2nd In Command Eastern Division
"This is the type of thing that we've been lobbying for "not in my city" and someone decide not in my city. Hence the reason why we were alerted to this discovery here at this premises."

This building is within the territory of the Ghost Town Crips, as the dense graffiti makes clear. It was occupied up to 2011 when guy Fuller was murdered there. Since then it was abandoned, with the doors walled up, and left to criminals.

Now it's turned out to be the stash spot for a deadly explosive, right under these stairs where Broaster led the Scenes of Crime Technician.

Jules Vasquez
"Okay now we are in the turf as you can see everywhere behind is "ghost town crips." Do you believe that the grenade was link to that gang?"

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster
"We have certain information that we will be processing and following up, so I will not comment further than the origination of the grenade or what it was destine to use for."

But the mission on this Saturday was to dispose of the explosive, and after about half an hour the BDF explosives expert arrived.

P. Coc, Warrant Officer Class 2
"It's very effective, but however looking at the grenade here it's very old. In order to destroy this we have to destroy it with a plastic explosive and so we will destroy this grenade by doing so."

Jules Vasquez
"What are your observations about its overall physical condition apart from being old?"

P. Coc, Warrant Officer Class 2
"It will still go off, not one percent, but you don't want to take the risks, so it's better that you destroy it by using explosives."

Jules Vasquez
"It's missing a clip I understand."

P. Coc, Warrant Officer Class 2
"The one of the top here is missing."

Jules Vasquez
"Should we feel relieve that something like this is off the streets out of the hands of the criminal element?"

P. Coc, Warrant Officer Class 2
"Well at least one is off now. I don't know how many are left."

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster
"We know that there are others on the street and we have been working tirelessly to ensure that we recover those missing grenades."

So, there is relief and worry - but which one will prevail on Carnival Day next Saturday?:

Jules Vasquez
"We are really a block from the carnival. Should revelers or carnival lookers feel a sense of relief or a sense of anxiety?"

Sr. Supt. Edward Broaster
"They should definitely feel a sense of security, like we've been exclaiming through our various media blitz that the police is doing their endeavor best to ensure for the September celebrations - to ensure that all Belizeans security and safety is addressed."

As we noted at the top of the story, this is the ninth grenade that has been found or detonated since the first exploded in May of 2008.

24 were stolen from the British Army in the early aughts, so there are still some 15 unaccounted for.

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