After a BDF soldier was shot on Holy Saturday in an apparent ambush by Guatemalan civilians, it put the whole country on notice that the Chiquibul Forest is more dangerous than ever.
But, the Guatemalan poachers, encroachers and lawbreakers persist, and on Saturday three of them were caught almost 5 miles within Belizean territory, near to one of the Ceibo Chico creeks in southern Chiquibul.
A joint patrol of BDF and the Friends for Conservation and Development found the trio with 390 grams, or almost a pound of weed and three empty vials - the types used for gold panning.
The three admitted knowing that they were inside Belizean territory, and one of them volunteered that this was the second time he was in the area and all the gold found in the Chiquibul is sold in the village of Monte Los Olivos at approximately $52.00 Belize dollars per gram.
He told the patrol that there could be as many as 40 persons in the area from several Guatemalan villages along the border. The trio reported seeing 10-15 gold panners leaving the area just as they were arriving.
They have been handed over to the San Ignacio Police pending charges of drug trafficking; camping without a permit inside a protected area and illegal entry into Belize.
Monte Los Olivos, which is emerging as the hub for many rackets inside Belize territory, has received substantial support from the OAS to promote it as a model community where alternative livelihoods are promoted to deter incursions into Belize. In a press release the FCD states, quote, "But that is far from the truth, since it is well reported that the main source of gold panners are coming from that village and are intermediaries in promoting the demand."
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