Last night we told you about the vicious beat down in Corozal where 42 year old Mark Villanueva was almost buried alive. The family told us that between Friday night and early Saturday morning Villanueva was dragged out of his dwelling and severely beaten. He was found unconscious on his relative's nearby property. Well that relative is his cousin Alberto Hall and he has been arrested and charged with grievous harm. Now, for context, we re-air the interview we did with Villanueva's niece Shanna Pott who described the heinous attack.
Shanna Pott, Niece
"The person who attacked my uncle came into his camp where he works his farm in Chan Chen Village. So he stays there by himself in this area, him and this other person. They live a few yards away from each other and my uncle was asleep in his camp at the time when he was attacked by this person. The person came into his camp and knocked him out. But my uncle said that before he was knocked out, he saw the person face. He knows exactly who did it and as a matter of fact, this person has admit it to attacking my uncle. He threw him down from his camp, 
because the camp is off the ground and from what we believed he was dragged to the other person's farm - to the other person's house. He was dragged to there where he suffered severe bruises all over his body. He had dirt in his stomach, because he was vomiting dirt and blood in the hospital. He was bounded, tied up. We believe he was tied and dragged. He had ligature marks on his hands when my mom and my brother found him."
"This person is claiming now, this is his story, that my uncle went into his place to steal his weed eater, which is a lie, because my uncle has his own things. He works very hard for what he owns. He is not rich, but he worked very hard for what he owns. My uncle was in is boxers and he was barefooted. So who goes to steal in their boxers and barefooted and how did he come with drag marks all over his body. It was probably at around 6am they got there and initially when my mom got there, she saw her brother laying in the dirt faced down. He was in boxers and had marks all over his body and he was covered with a cardboard box and then this person who did this, he went to the cardboard box and lift it up and told the police "see him there." Just like that."
As we told you, Villanueva was helping Hall build his house but quit a week ago because he was being underpaid. Villanueva and his family believe that's the reason why Hall got upset and attacked him. But Hall had told police that Villanueva was trying to steal his weed whacker and that he was simply trying to protect his property. But police concluded that it's no justification for such a beating and they proceeded with charges. When we spoke to Pott today she told us that she expected a harsher charge like attempted murder.
Pott sent us a short clip with Villanueva in the hospital describing what he remembers from the attack.
Shanna Pott, Niece
"You know what happened to you?"
Mark Villanueva, Survived Beat Down by Cousin
"Well last time I see Alberto beat me up."
Shanna Pott, Niece
"So you know who did this to you?"
Mark Villanueva, Survived Beat Down by Cousin
"Beto Hall."
Shanna Pott, Niece
"How did you know its Beto Hall?"
Mark Villanueva, Survived Beat Down by Cousin
"The last thing I remember him pulling me out of bed."
Shanna Pott, Niece
"He pulled you out of the bed and he knock you out?"
Mark Villanueva, Survived Beat Down by Cousin
"He knocked me with something. I don't know what he knocked me with."
Despite how bad Villanueva looks in the video, when we spoke to Pott today she told us that he is recovering slowly and that he has been moved from Emergency to the Surgical Ward. In terms of the case, police have recorded a statement from Villanueva and are still investigating the theft aspect of this story.
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