7 News Belize

Missing For Days, Dutch National Found Dead
posted (October 13, 2017)
All hope was lost today at noon when a search team found the decomposing body of 69 year old Dutch national Chris Roggema.

Roggema got lost in the jungle on Monday inside St. Margaret's Village on the Hummingbird Highway. There were several searches to find him but they turned up nothing until today. 7news' Courtney Weatherburne and cameraman Codie Norales were first on the scene along with the search team when the forensics team arrived. Here is their story.

Courtney Weatherburne reporting
It's in this dense jungle that 69 year old Chris Roggema got lost. On Monday morning around 10:00, Roggema along with a couple men including a land surveyor went to document GPS readings on a plot of land in St. Margaret's Village on the Humming Bird highway. Roggema was interested in buying it. But he wasn't feeling well. The men warned him not to go in his condition, but Roggema insisted. His friend Jaime Perez wasn't there on Monday but gives the account.

Jaime Perez, Friend
"We told him he is not in the position to go to the jungle, because he was being sick for a week."

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"What type of sickness did he have?"

Jaime Perez, Friend
"He had like a cough and fever. But also he says that it doesn't matter, that he wanted to go. So he came along with Mr. Martinez and his wife and they came here with their GPS."

But soon, Roggema realized that decision to tag along wasn't the best because as they were finishing up to leave, he started to feel weak and he could hardly walk. So the land surveyor told Roggema to stay put while he goes for the vehicle to pick him up. But when he returned Roggema wasn't there. He called out to Roggema and he answered but by that time Rogemma was far off the trail and the surveyor couldn't get to him.

Jaime Perez, Friend
"We left Mr. Chris over that side and also when he hollered for Mr. Chris, he was in that direction. So he said Mr. Chris come back you are in the wrong trail. So he answered 2 times and when Mr. Martinez called for him again, there was no answer."

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"You shouldn't have been that far. Why didn't Mr. Martinez maybe go and try to get him from where he heard him?"

Jaime Perez, Friend
"Well Mr. Martinez doesn't know this are so much."

Roggema's friends suspect that he got desperate and couldn't wait for the land surveyor to get back so he wandered off on the wrong path.

So that was the last time anyone saw or heard from Roggema. Since then villagers along with police and BDF have been searching for him in the bushes and couldn't find him.

Until today at 12:00 noon when the search team found his body about a quarter mile from the plot of land he went to see on Monday.

Walter Santos, Volunteer Group
"I said lets narrow the search, start from where he was. We were going to do a hasty search, but narrow which is like a comb search. The smell start coming in and we start seeing vultures flying around."

The forensic team were on the scene around 2:00 to inspect the area and confirm the body's location. So far friends believe that it was his sickness and being exposed to the elements at his age that killed him.

Jaime Perez, Friend
"I just feel like and saw the point that he was not in a position being as his age."

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"It's natural causes you believe at this point?"

Jaime Perez, Friend
"Yeah, it's natural causes."

It is a very sad end to Roggema's life. His friend shared the moments he will cherish the most.

Jaime Perez, Friend
"Well it's very sad, because I know Mr. Chris for the last 15 years and I know his kids. They came and visit us and their kids plays with my kids and we cook food together, he is a very nice person, very happy person."

His children flew in from the states today and raced over to see their father for the last time.

Jacob Roggema, Son
"My dad, he was a good man. He loved Belize. He loved all his children."

And he loved Belize as well - but now Roggema will never get to enjoy his home on this St. Margaret's property - a dream he wanted so badly.

Angel Fuller, Son
"I will always remember him as loving Belize, not really wanting to go to the States. He just loves the rainforest."

Roggema leaves behind 6 children. He had been living in Belize for about 30 years and owned Coco Plum Garden Spa on Caye Caulker.

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