7 News Belize

Who Hunted Down el Diablo In Paraiso?
posted (May 27, 2016)
Delmar Guerra, they called him "El Diablo" - "the devil" in English, and yesterday in the village of Paraiso, he was executed with uncommon precision. It was a hit, pulled off by two men on a motorbike - that's the kind of narco killing we've only heard of in Mexico, Columbia and other crime capitals. But, now, it's come to Belize and today we went north to find out more about this execution in the early evening:

Jules Vasquez reporting
Delmar Guerra was shot and killed here on the main road in Paraiso village, at the home of a relative who does his laundry.

It's just around the corner from his home in Chula Vista, and so he was most likely relaxed - not expecting to confront threats.

That's when two men on a dirt bike pulled up and opened fire - the multiple bullet holes in the windows of the van show the intensity of the attack. A neighbour who asked to appear off camera told us what she saw:

Voice of: Eyewitness
"When the truck came it honked twice. My son then told me, "Mom they came for the clothes." So I went to my room to take out the clothes. I was dragging the bag of clothes through the living room, as it was very heavy. Then I heard "Pow, Pow!" I thought it was pop-shot, but my daughter told me, "No mama, they are shooting!" I said "Oh my God, they came to kill us!" because I could clearly hear the shots. When I lifted up my head, I saw two men shooting. I couldn't see their faces because they had on their helmets."

They also wore long sleeved shirts.

The men had stopped right down the road 200 feet away, apparently to fix the motorbike. They drew attention because neither man took off his helmet while trying to, or pretending to, try to fix the motorbike. But when the minivan pulled up, the motorbike sprang into action and zoomed towards this house.

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"The person drove up beside the van and there was where they fired those shots."

Nine shots in total which injured Guerra to his midsection. The stains on the floor of the minivan shows how he bled out:

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Mr. Guerra was injured. He was taken out by bystanders and taken to the Corozal Community Hospital. Whereupon arrival he succumbed to his injuries. He received injuries to his left lower abdomen."

Guerra was with his stepson who had just run inside:

Voice of: Eyewitness
"Only a little boy was with him. But he was already inside the house. He was not outside. He was with me when I was taking out the clothes. He didn't even see anything. And nobody came out because I told everyone to stay put."

But, it is clear that the man called El Diablo was being hunted by professional killers who operated with exact timing and ruthless precision - he was armed, but most likely did not get a chance to use the weapon:

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Yes a firearm was found there on the scene but it was Mr. Guerra's licensed 9mm. Apparently the firearm fell out of his waist when the bystanders were taking him out of the vehicle."

So, a known underworld figure gets executed in a small northern village, but police would strictly not say if it is drug related:

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold. Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Well at this time I do not want to speculate and I really don't know what was the cause of his demise."

Jules Vasquez
"Is this someone who you all had awareness of as an operator in the underworld?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Yes, we knew that about him, but since I am here in Corozal, he hasn't been arrested for any such offense."

Jules Vasquez
"Are you able to say what sort of criminal forces are involved?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"No I will not be able to say."

Jules Vasquez
"Is it related to anything in Mexico? Are you liaising with your counterparts on the other side of the boarder?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Yes we are liaising with them, I believe it's a little bit of both."

Jules Vasquez
"Do you believe the suspects were Belizeans operating within Belize? And do you have an idea of their whereabouts?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"Well no, at this point in time the police will not be able to say whether they are locals or foreigners."

Jules Vasquez
"Do you believe that he was active in the drug trade?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"I cannot say. They are only rumors."

Jules Vasquez
"Is it someone that you all had any type of ongoing surveillance on because of his reputation?"

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"That I cannot say either."

So, more questions than answers, but there are underworld forces hard at work - so should the public be concerned that their violence will spill into the mainstream?

Sr. Supt. Dennis Arnold, Officer Commanding, Corozal
"These people who came to do that, as you say, execution style, they know exactly who they are coming for and I believe that the person knows exactly what he had done and he would have known that they are coming for him."

As you heard, police have no one detained, but will be seeking out some persons for questioning. As we noted, Guerra survived an execution attempt in Calderitas in 2013, when he was shot in the face.

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