Email

Print

It's outlandish in the extreme - but this is a story with no easy answers - and today we went to Orange Walk as the family took it one step further:

Daniel Ortiz reporting
The Cervantes Family arrived at the Orange Walk Police Station: Ramon Jr, with his mother, Vilma and his sister, Reece Cervantes-Martin.

They were there to give a police statement, and to hand in the phone call they received from the man claiming to Manuel Castillo. They each had to put their interaction with the caller on record, so that police can treat it as evidence.

They entered the Police station immediately, and stayed in there for a little more than 2 hours.

Outside, a few town residents gathered, waiting behind the rope that police placed expecting a crowd.

At around 12:15, the family exited, all 3 appeared contented that they had done what they could to get that telephone call on the police record for this case.

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"We came here to have my mother give her statement and also my sister and I gave a short statement too about when the phone call was received from Manuel Castillo and also my mother hand in the recording of the conversation."

Reporter
"For the record sir, once again, does your family honestly believe that this was Manuel Castillo who called you?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"It is Manuel Castillo."

Daniel Ortiz
"How can you speak with such certainty?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"Because Manuel Castillo was a customer of our store. His family have real estate property here. I don't know who owns it, if it is his sister or so, as was said in the conversation as my mom said their family and my family grew up as neighbors."

Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar Vega has taken note of the allegation against him, and he's chosen to make a direct response:

Hon. Gaspar Vega - Deputy Prime Minister
"I continue to sympathize with the tragedy of the Cervantes Family, but their grief cannot entitle them to see and now wreck me and my family. I was not and could not have been involved in any way with Mr. Cervantes' death. All who know me know that I would be utterly incapable of such a horrible thing. I have to feel that politics is involve here. It is a terrifying thought, but the facts are clear and I condemn what is being done."

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"It's definitely not political. What seems to be political as the events that have been unfolding over time and the facts that have been coming to light seem to be pointing in the direction that my father's murder was political. As for him saying that the revelation of the tape is political is you know - Manuel Castillo called and from the start of the investigation I had told all the media that as events unfold we will be keeping the public informed about those events that has been unfolding and this is one such occasion."

Daniel Ortiz
"If you are supposed to take the integrity of the phone call seriously, is reaching out to the family to try to assist them with the investigation. Do you take the view that by revealing that phone call you have compromise that relationship between him and this family in trying to proceed with the investigation?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"I don't think so. As I said at the press conference I think it is no more than ever it is in his interest to come with all the evidence that he has."

Daniel Ortiz
"Do you have more? Do you have anything else as the phone call has said that he will reveal different things to you guys, have you receive anything else other than that phone call?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"In phone call no, I have not received any."

Daniel Ortiz
"Any other things... the perception is that you are withholding and gradually releasing. Do you have anything else that could assist the police that you are withholding at this time?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"I wouldn't want to say yes or no. As time goes by anything could become evidence. I wouldn't want to say yes or no and then...."

So, the bottom line is that there really isn't much to hinge the explosive allegation against the Deputy Prime Minister on.

Yet, the caller names Vega, and the possibility exists that if the caller is indeed Manuel Castillo, he could be manipulating the family's desperate need for answers to deflect blame from himself.

Hon. Gaspar Vega - Deputy Prime Minister
"It hurts and angers me that a recording from the person the police have stated to be the principal murderer, and who ran away to avoid justice, should be used now to endanger me and my family. I cannot understand how anyone could seek to place any reliance on what this Castillo supposedly says. His co-accused have confessed and detailed exactly how Castillo masterminded this and another murder. And everything has been confirmed by the evidence the police gathered."

"The fact is that as the murder mastermind, Castillo can have no credibility. This is also underlined by the huge holes and obvious lies in the story he tells on the recording."

So it begs the question, yet again, what does Ramon Cervantes and his family want?

Reporter
"You've deposited your statement. What do you expect to happen now in relation to the case?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"Well I hope that as is normal the conversation was handed in, the ring leader of the ring that killed my dad mention a full name in particular and we hope that the police carry out their investigation as they would do with any other ordinary citizen that is accused or mention in a crime."

Reporter
"Are you hoping to have the police bring in the two persons that were called in this recording to question, about the credibility of the allegations?"

Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes - Son of Deceased
"In the interest of justice and in their interest I hope so. The purpose of all this is to get the truth. We are not here to crucify anyone or to go after anyone. This is to find the truth. What we want we've said it, we want the truth and then we want justice."

Yet as you heard, Gaspar Vega is accusing them of orchestrating a politically motivated attack against him.

Still, though, observers note that it seems almost unthinkable that Cervantes, would be callous enough to exploit his family's grief for politics.

Mike Rudon, Ch5
"How has this been affecting the family, affecting you?"

Vilma Cervantes - Widow of Deceased
"Well memories just come back."

For observers not connected to the case, all they want is for a transparent inquiry into the information revealed in the telephone call

Kevin Bernard - Mayor, Orange Walk Town
"From what I can tell you I believe that the family being a very God fearing people, I don't think they will make up anything like this and so what that recording has in there is very condemning and its worrying, as a country if we would ever have gone that route and so all I want to plea is that now that the family has decided today to take the evidence in to the police, for them to take all measures and delve into this thing."

We tried to get a comment from the Officer Commanding Orange Walk Police, but he directed us to lead investigator, Assistant Police Commissioner Russell Blackett - who we could not reach.