Over 2 weeks ago, there was a very disturbing report which emerged from the St. Martin Government School, which is right in the middle of an immigrant community in Belmopan City. It involved a 5 year-old boy who was indecently assaulted by another 5 year-old who allegedly touched his privates, and supposedly sodomized him.
7News didn't pick up the story because police sources told us that the investigators could not find any evidence that it actually happened. Still, the disturbing report lingered, until things came to a head today. The mother of the child is convinced that the school, the police, and the Education Ministry aren't doing enough to get to the bottom of it.
It led to a protest today, and our team was there. Here's that report:
Daniel Ortiz reporting
A number of parents who enroll their children at the San Martin Government School, refused to send them to classes today.
They organized themselves in the neighborhood church, an impromptu Parent meeting.
These parents were the ones who stood behind the mother of the 5 year-old child who allegedly showed signs of behind sexually violated. The problem is the School doesn't acknowledge that it happened, the staff reportedly are silent, and the police say that they have no evidence to support the allegation.
It's a convoluted matter that has turned into an ugly public issue and the family and friends of this child will not let it rest until they are satisfied that Belmopan Police have adequately investigated the report.
The child, who is described as autistic, says that he was fondled and sodomized with an object.
The mother of the child has been pressing this case on behalf of her child. Even though she's receiving institutional resistance, she is not afraid of the psychological repercussions to her son. To protect her son's identity, we've blurred her face, and distorted her voice.
Mother of the child
"I sat down home and I ask myself that same question, but I say if I sit down home and 10 minutes later then tell my son that they rape you and my son will ask me mommy why don't you fight for me. Yes I am concern. I want justice. Everybody knows me and he gets bad treatment from the community. I could not even take him to shop. He can't go to school."
And it's that same mental distress that drives her. Patrick Menzies, who has taken up the fight on the Spanish-speaking wing of the Evangelical Churches, has been pressing the matter on her behalf.
Patrick Menzies - Executive Director, Jasmine Alert
"What they are saying is that the evidence that came back when they did the swap - didn't provide any evidence of rape, meaning evidently and they can correct me, there is no semen or nothing to be found inside the anus of the child. However, there is so many anomalies; the doctor said ask the parent when she got to the hospital "ma'am did you bathe this kid?" the mom said no. The funny thing was that the child had blood in his underwear, but the butt was completely clean. How can that occur? Well have since reveal 
himself because the child has autism. We need to understand that serious fact, because the child has autism, he remembers things slowly. So in the beginning all he said was that was another 5 year old boy in the bathroom with him. He identified the boys' name and his backpack. When the police came with him, he identify the actual child and he explain that they put finger into his rear. Now, let me be very clear here, we have evidence that can show you the fact that the child's underwear on day 2 was bloody again, it was still bleeding from what happened the day before. The doctor statement basically clarified the child was penetrated, but I cannot tell you if it was with penis, stick or with the finger. We don't know and that's why the conclusion of the statement is the fact that they can't say its rape because they have no proof that he was raped."
The doctor cannot conclusively say rape, but the family says that the child was violated with an object.
Mother of the child
"He said that he was in the bathroom, they pull his pants down to his private, he didn't know what they did. Then he went to the classroom, he was crying. From that day I can't sleep, I just lay down on the bed and I see 1am - 2am - 3am in the morning. I can't eat."
Mike Rudon, Ch5
"Can you see a difference in him?"
Mother of the child
"He ask me why he can't go back to school because he likes school, then he say he can't go back to school because they touch me here and here."
And now, Menzies and these families are bringing pressure on the School, the Ministry of Education, and the police to step up their efforts to get to the bottom of is allegation. They did so this morning by assembling as a crowd, but they got into a confrontation with the Belmopan Police because they were reportedly engaging in an illegal gathering.
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