7 News Belize

COLA Crew Vindicated Of Tire Fire Charge
posted (March 22, 2017)

In October of 2016, at the height of the teachers' strike, unknown persons started a tyre fire on the Belcan Bridge.  It was put out in a few minutes, and didn't lead to anything else, but police moved quickly to find and charge the persons responsible.  Within a few days, they said that the activist group COLA and its allies were responsible.   COLA President Giovanni Brackett, Perry "Stix"  Smith, Clayburn Pascascio, Adrian Avaloy and two minors were charged with causing a bonfire to be set without police permission.  They all pleaded not guilty when they first appeared in court five months ago.  Southside Commander Chester Williams said it was a "methodical investigation" and that police had all the evidence. But, today in Magistrate's court, the case fizzled and the charges were struck out against all 6 accused.  That gave Brackett and his attorney an opportunity to do some chest-thumping against the government:…

Giovanni Brackett - Charge Withdrawn
"Today what happened Jules is that what the prosecutor said was that for the lack of evidence they are dismissing the charges against all of us."

Hon. Kareem Musa - COLA Attorney
"The prosecutor was never prepared to go to trail, they didn't have their disclosure ready and to me that was the first indication that in fact they did not have anything against any of those individuals who were charged with that bonfire. And so what it was, clearly an instance of political victimization."

Jules Vasquez
"They had caution statement Mr. Brackett. They had these young men saying that you pay them money to put the tires out there and to put them on fire. That was the understanding we had. We had Mr. Chester Williams himself; he was the person who processed you all. Explain to me how all of this big talking, big scenery comes to dust."

Giovanni Brackett
"Well Jules it's not just minister Sedi Elrington that lives in an imaginary world you know. Many other people who probably investigated this matter were imaginary as well, even the evidence."

Hon. Kareem Musa
"I could not believe what they were trying to produce; they gave me some DVD that has absolutely footage of nothing. Nothing was on there to incriminate anybody and then much more than that, the statements by the police officers, they statement of supposed witnesses, nothing was there from the very beginning and we have been saying that from the start."

Giovanni Brackett
"They've tried to immobilise COLA that was the whole point of this. Try to shut us up, try to tear us down and to crush us but that can't happen."

Fitzharris Howard - COLA Memeber
"By trying to silent, by trying to shut that us, that helps nobody because to me, one of we, da all of we."

Perry "Stix" Smith - Charge Withdrawn
"Like I said from the beginning, this is a circus. How me could ride all they tire on a bicycle Jules? You see me ride 2 crate of chicken, you see me ride rice and they thing they but 20 tire on a bicycle. So this morning when I gone in there and they dismiss the case, I say this is about time because they just the back and forth we, the waste the court time, the waste the government time, the waste for we tax payers time the railroad we back and forth through this circus."

Clayburn Pascascio - Charges Withdrawn
"Because da problem they mi want, make it look like da problem and da no kind of problem, that's all I have nothing else to say."

Jules Vasquez
"As far as many in the media are concerned, there was video tape evidence because you the talk about this thing, same day on the BNTU rostrum and then shortly after you spoke, fire go burn."

Giovanni Brackett
"Jules as I said to your last reporters, it seems that I'm prophetic. This was all so that we couldn't make a move and mobilise but let me tell the prime minister something, you may not see the two thousand on Thursday but you'll see the twenty thousand before the year is finished because things the get harder da Belize."

Musa says he would advise Brackett and the others to now pursue a civil suit against Government for a nuisance prosecution.

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