Important Note: This Internet version of 7 News is a verbatum
transcript of our evening television news script. Many interviews on our newscast
are conducted in Creole. In the interest of clarity for our foreign readers,
we attempt to paraphrase the Creole quotes in English
PM John Briceño returned from an official visit to Honduras yesterday, and if you're wondering what he did on behalf of Belize while he was there, well, so are we. There has been no official press release, interview, or press conference to brief the public on the official business conducted.
However, the Government Press Office did make four Facebook posts about the trip. All four posts received a total of 695 reactions and even fewer comments, indicating a very low rate of traction.
So that's why we went to the Philip Goldson International Airport today when we heard the Prime Minister was leaving again, this time on personal leave, reportedly until early next week.
He arrived at 2:05 this afternoon-and his flight to Houston was leaving at 2:30. But before he got there, one vehicle arrived a little earlier with just his security detail. That was followed a few minutes later by his personal vehicle, with his driver Edwin Hill, who took the carry-on luggage from inside the trunk. A third vehicle arrived, and that was when the PM came out. We tried to ask him about the trip, but he said he was on daddy duty.
Reports to our newsroom say he was traveling to accompany his son to university in Ireland.
We note that the Prime Minister also held a joint press conference in Honduras-unheard of in Belize.
And if you still want to know what happened in Honduras, one of the Press Office's Facebook posts said, quote, "Discussions further addressed cooperation in health and security, including opportunities to recruit medical professionals and expand opportunities for Belizeans to pursue studies and specialized training in Honduras." End quote. This comes after heavy pressure from the US Government to remove the Cuban medical brigade from the Belizean healthcare system.
And we were also planning to ask the Prime Minister about the pressing public issue of high electricity bills.
Coming out of yesterday's joint press conference with BEL and the Ministry of Public Utilities was the grim conclusion that Belizeans will continue to pay higher than usual electricity bills because 1.) there is not enough power generating capacity in-country and 2.) Belize won't be seeing utility-scale solar power until at least 2029.
So how did the Saudi Solar Project and the 80-megawatt solar project get derailed and delayed in the past 3 years?
Courtney Menzies takes a look at it. Here is that story.
Within the conversation of excessively high electricity bills, one question is repeatedly asked: what happened to the solar power projects that GOB claimed to be working on?
The first is a $77 million US dollar loan from the Saudi Fund for Development, which was signed on August 4th, 2023. That was to build Belize's first major utility-scale solar facility.
In 2025, the PM promised that the project would be implemented by the end of this year.
John Briceno, Prime Minister "These new solar plant projects will come online by the end of 2026 and represent an investment of over $140 million."
But that's not anywhere close to happening. And GOB is now blaming the Saudis for the delay.
Michel Chebat, Minister of Public Utilities "Unfortunately the Saudis have a longer procurement process and more conditions that you have to fulfill. As a matter of fact I think one of their conditions is that you have to use Saudi engineers for many aspects of this project and so that is a little bit more involved."
And so if Belizeans had hoped that solar-powered energy would help to reduce their bills, they'll be waiting on that for a couple more years.
Lynn Young, Executive Chairman, BEL "So you have to go through and get the design, it takes a year to get the design right and after that you go out for bids and then you're talking about 18 months just to start to get the equipment in because of all the issues with the logistics also there's a strong demand for electrical equipment because of all the data centers that are being built in the United States and around the world so the demand for electrical equipment has gone up significantly which has pushed up the price of the electrical equipment and pushed up the times of these equipment. I'm saying all this to say you hear say, "Well, what happened to this project? From the time you decide to do a project it might be 3 to 4 years before it gets online. In fact the latest estimate we have for the Saudi Project and the Solar Project-the 80 megawatts-we think it might be online by 2029."
In December of 2025, BEL said in an official release that there would have been, quote, "no need for a rate increase if the utility-scale solar projects and battery storage solutions requested by BEL had been delivered on schedule."
So in essence while Chairman Young did not want to cast blame, BEL had already put it on GOB, and, now, GOB is shifting it to the Saudis.
Bottom line? The delays caused by that will now drive up the cost of new sources of power-all the while neither BEL nor the public can afford to pay their power bills.
An 80-megawatt solar project-supported by the IFC and signed earlier this year-will see multiple solar plant facilities built throughout the country. A release says that will be operational by 2027, but we wouldn't hold our breath.
And while solar is one thing, corporate governance is another. Can a member of the PUC board, or a commissioner-whose job it is to regulate BEL-also act as a BEL board member-whose job it is to protect and advance the financial interests of shareholders for a private corporation?
Jules Vasquez examined the legal dimension of this quandary for one board member doing double duty:
Rolando Santos has been on the PUC Board since December 2022. And more recently he was named to the BEL Board of Directors. The Prime Minister appointed him to both posts. Santos is an electrical engineer who formerly worked at BEL.
But, the presence on both the boards of the regulator and the regulated smacks of a very live conflict of interest:
Jules Vasquez "How do you handle corporate governance when one of your regulators is also a board member? I see a member of the PUC is also on the BEL board."
Lynn Young, Chairman, BEL "I think we are in very unique difficult circumstances right now, and I've said that, I think one person said it's a crisis and I agreed. I think when we are in this kind of situation we have to work together a little bit, it's not going to be easy but a lot of this is being cause by external things that are happening outside the country that's affecting all of us, not only electricity but like you said the bus fares, the BTL situation or whatever and the reality is that no company can provide good service if it's losing money. So some of what is happening with us is the company is trying to get back on its feet."
And while it may be all hands on deck, the law governing the PUC is explicit. It says, "No Commissioner, employee or member of the administrative staff of the Commission shall, directly or indirectly: have any interest in any contract or agreement for the… furnishing of any service for or by any public utility provider;"
Being a board member is providing a service-and directors are paid by the utility.
It is expressly against the law, but the Chairman who runs the BEL board glosses that over:
Lynn Young: "What I was saying is that you're right but the circumstances we're in right now I personally think it's better that we and the PUC and the government and the media and the employees all try to find a way to work together to get out of this."
For most regular folks, the board's composition is a semantic point: what people really want to know is what's driving up their light bill by tens or hundreds of dollars this billing cycle.
And many are pointing to those new smart meters-which BEL installed nationwide in the last few months.
We asked the Chairman whether the smart meters were contributing to the high electricity bills. Are the meters picking up even minuscule amounts of electricity usage-more so than the older meters? Here's what Young explained.
Jules Vasquez: "Might there be greater sensitivity in the smart meter for discreet suction of electricity? I'm saying that maybe there is something like if you leave your charger plugged in for your cellphone and perhaps it's not enough of a draw to turn the analog meters as much as a smart meter, to be more sensitive to discreet voltages, it might be able to discern."
Lynn Young, Executive Chairman, BEL "I understand what you're saying, I don't know what is the case, you'd have investigate that but to the best of my knowledge and these kind of equipment I will say that like you rightly pointed out, mechanical equipment such as the old meters as they get older they would tend to under-record as opposed to over-record. The electronic meters won't do that, they're going to be very accurate all the time. So to the extent that is possible, I agree, that is possible but we haven't seen any overwhelming evidence that that is what is happening."
It was a firearm arrest that stemmed from a domestic dispute call, and today we got a chance to speak with the victim who made that call after her ex-common-law pointed a gun at her.
He has since been detained, and this afternoon we spoke to the mother of one who says she wants the public to know what happened and how long she has been dealing with these threats. Jomarie Lanza has this story.
Yesterday police reported that they had detained 30-year-old Anderson Martinez in Ladyville with a 9-millimeter pistol with 14 rounds of live ammunition.
Police were called after he allegedly threatened his former common-law of 7 years with that same weapon.
She told us today that he showed up at her apartment and pointed the weapon at her, threatening to kill her.
Yamileth Orellana Funez, Domestic Dispute Victim "(And so he came on Sunday, and when I was crossing the gate, he was there, and he threatened me with a gun. So I went and called the police. When the police came and investigated, they started searching him and all that, and they didn't find the gun at his house. They found it here. Then he came, and he told the police that I wasn't being threatened, but I was, he does the same thing to me through the phone, I had seen a small black gun, and he hadn't threatened me with that one. There was a real gun, and then the police took it.)"
Martinez appeared in court this morning for three offenses: aggravated assault, kept firearm without a gun license, and kept ammunition without a gun license.
He pleaded not guilty and was placed on remand. Though Martinez remains in prison, Orellana says she still fears for her life and the life of her family and believes that Martinez's friends might try to harm her. She has taken out a protection order-but lives with that fear-and she wants the public to be a witness:
Yamileth Orellana Funez, Domestic Dispute Victim "(So, if something happens to me or to my family, I want to say that it's because of them, because most of his friends, I know they could do something to me because they're really just like him. So I'm afraid for my life and for my sisters' lives because I know they're going to find me, honestly. And if they can't find me or they want to get me, they'll go after my family, and my family has nothing to do with this because I spoke clearly, I went to their family and they didn't do anything, honestly.)"
Tonight a 5-year-old from Maskall Village has multiple injuries after a dog owned by a fellow villager rushed him while he was walking from his house to his grandfather's home. We spoke with the mother who said she wants justice because her child could have died:
Kisshawn Cuthkelvin, Mother of Kevin Young Jr. "We bring he down yesterday, he received two stitch behind his ears, he is badly scraped, his body his whole body even his leg."
"Before I took him to the hospital police brought the medical form and that was what we used to take him to Karl Heusner but all they did was clean his wound and stitch his ear and send him out with antibiotics and you know that's all but then this morning he woke up his neck is badly swollen, half his face is swollen and he's crying in pain."
"With me myself, I take that same route everyday, it rushed me also, you can just walk and the dog runs out of the yard to come to you."
"I'm a little upset because the incident happened yesterday and up to today no one from the house came to see my son, came to check on him, ask about our medical expenses nothing so we're still waiting for that and I doubt it will happen because he said the dog is not his but it's your yard, it's for his grandson or something like that but it's still your yard."
We contacted the villager named by the victim's family as the dog's owner. He denied that the dog belonged to him and hung up the phone.
The opposition UDP is getting ready for a municipal election in 8 months-but, tonight, it's going through some changes after high-profile executive resignations. Juliet Thimbriel and Audrey Wallace have separately resigned from their posts in the past two weeks.
Thimbriel resigned as national campaign manager late last week-she says without any hard feelings. Sources tell us she was not being consulted by Party Chairlady Sheena Pitts on the vetting of candidates for the municipals. Thimbriel says that regardless she will be back on Wave Radio and TV this Friday.
And, chairman of the public relations committee, Audrey Wallace also resigned-reportedly because the party has struggled to find funds for advertising.
These high-profile departures are likely to come up when the UDP hosts a press conference tomorrow.
The Government of Belize and IDB are hosting a three-day workshop in Belmopan to prepare for a program aimed at improving labor force participation and employability in Belize.
Rissella Dominguez Patt explained what they are trying to achieve:
Rissela Dominguez-Patt "Today we're having a kickoff workshop session. This three-day workshop session has to do with an IDB project which was approved by the Government of Belize and so the kickoff workshop begins with the implementation phase of the program to improve labor force participation and employability in Belize. So over these three days we're going to have representatives from the Ministry of Finance, we're also going to have representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank, the Central Executing Unit and the Ministry of Immigration, Governance and Labor and other technical specialists who will be reviewing the project's objective, activities and timeline. So the program's overall objective is to increase the supply of labor force skilled in Belize with special attention to women, youth and migrant. This project has two main components. The first is focuses on improving services that help people access the labor force. This includes strengthening the employment services for job seekers and employers, providing specialized support to women, youth and migrant, improving labor market information and introducing modern technology. It will also strengthen the Labor Department's employment unit and support entrepreneurship particularly in the green and blue economy. Now the second component focuses on increasing supply of labor through relevant high-quality training in priority areas. These include tourism, BPO, information communication technology, green and blue economy and also digital skills and child care. The program will benefit Belize by helping job seekers develop relevant skills and access employment opportunities. It will also help employers find suitably trained workers and provide the Government with better information to identify and address labor market needs. Women, youth and migrant who may experience additional barriers to employment will receive more targeted support. The program is an investment in Belize's people. Its success will be measured by the improvement experienced by workers, job seekers, employers and communities and by its contribution to a more skilled, inclusive, productive and resilient labor force."
The workshop concludes Thursday with agreements on immediate responsibilities and the next steps for program implementation.
Police have arrested a member of the Belize Coast Guard and a farmer for a home invasion in Hattieville on Thursday. The duo, 29-year-old Sheffan Devan Hemmans and 46-year-old Alberto Arreaza, are accused of breaking into a home in the Belize American New Site area and stealing a firearm and a $46,000 pickup truck. ASP Stacy Smith gave us the details of that report.
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Police have formally arrested and charged 29-year-old Chefan Hemmans, a Belize Coast Guard officer, and 26-year-old Alberto Artiaga, a laborer of Cayo District for the crime of aggravated burglary. The arrest of Hemmans and Artiaga follows the ongoing investigation into an aggravated burglary report made by a Hattieville resident who reported to police that at around 7:45 PM on Thursday he was at his residence when 2 masked male persons, one of whom was armed with a firearm, entered his residence and demanded that he hand over the key for a black in color 2026 single-cab pickup truck. He complied with this request and the male persons made off with the vehicle. Having been advised of this occurrence the department standard operating procedures were activated and this proved successful. At approximately 9:45 PM the operational team in Santa Rosa, Western Belize, intercepted the black in color single-cab pickup truck and also observed at that time was another vehicle which sped off. The vehicle was pursued and on board that vehicle was Mr. Hemmans. A search of Mr. Hemmans additionally led to the discovery of 50 live rounds of .22 LR ammunition. Consequently Mr. Hemmans was additionally charged for kept ammunition without a gun license."
The accused, 29-year-old Sheffan Devan Hemmans and 46-year-old Alberto Arreaza, appeared in court this afternoon to answer a single charge of aggravated burglary. Both men pleaded not guilty to the charges and were remanded to prison. They return to court on October 20th for disclosure.
San Pedro police arrested two men and a woman for a drug bust that happened last Friday.
ASP Stacy Smith told us what officers uncovered at a home in the Boca del Rio area.
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "San Pedro police have formally arrested and jointly charged 26-year-old Benedicto Bol, 26-year-old Horace Anthony Crawford and 24-year-old Bridget Alcoser, all of San Pedro Town for 3 counts of possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply to another. These charges stem from a search conducted by operational personnel at a residence in the Boca del Rio area of San Pedro on 21st August 2026. This search led to the discovery of 1,312 grams of suspected cannabis, 21 grams of suspected cocaine and 28 grams of suspected crack cocaine."
Police also made another gun arrest in the Belize District over the weekend. ASP Stacy Smith says it happened at a residence in Frederick Alley, Belize City.
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Police have formally arrested and charged 27-year-old Tyrese Gladden of Frederick Alley, Belize City after a search of his residence which resulted in the discovery of a 9mm Glock pistol containing a magazine with 10 live rounds of 9mm ammunition. The search was conducted at the residence on 23rd August 2026."
Police also uncovered an illegal weapon at a home on Pitter Street. Two persons were charged, but one of them took the rap for the weapon. ASP Smith shared the details of that arrest with us.
ASP Stacy Smith, Police Staff Officer "Police have formally arrested and jointly charged 20-year-old Gregoria Pitter and 19-year-old Aaron Pitter for the offense of kept firearm without a gun license. The arrest follows an operation at a residence on Pitter Street by members of the Violence Prevention and Enforcement Team just before 9:00 PM on 17th of August 2026. This operation resulted in the discovery of a black 9mm pistol. Aaron Pitter has since pled guilty to the charge and is currently remanded at the Belize Central Prison where he awaits sentencing."
There's a new social media platform designed to bring Belizeans together. It's called "Yerisoh" and it is developed by Belizean creator David Godinez. As Jaleeza Roberts found out, the app creates a space for Belizeans at home and abroad to post, see, and experience everything like your normal social media but with a Belizean flair:
The Prime Minister has left the country on personal leave, and the Belize Bus Association has extended the deadline on its threat of a national bus shutdown.
They extended the deadline to next week Tuesday, September 1st-to accommodate the Cabinet meeting that was supposed to decide on their demand for a fuel subsidy.
In a press release issued yesterday, they stated that they have unanimously decided to absorb the cost after the Minister of Transport asked for additional time.
In related news, the Public Transportation Investment Bill was introduced in the House on Friday. It seeks to approve and ratify the Government's investment in the National Bus Company by transferring to and vesting certain assets in the company, for example, the terminals. It will also provide for certain exemptions from taxes and duties proposed to be granted to the NBC.
The Minister of Transport explained that they have made progress so far, and this investment will further the improvements in the public transport system.
Dr. Louis Zabaneh, Minister of Transport "The NBC has the full coverage of the southern corridor which is from Punta Gorda all the way to Belmopan and then through the Coastal Road all the way to the George Price Highway at La Democracia and it also has about 83% of the coverage from Benque Viejo to Belize City. You're not hearing about anything with racing on those corridors anymore. The incidents of buses breaking down have fallen dramatically. NBC has already invested in 8 newer buses and when we're talking about newer not just newer Blue Birds and in the same manner we've had before. These buses are all bucket seat buses with air conditioning. All the buses that have been brought in and there is resources to buy up to 15 buses and that is an ongoing process. Along with that the NBC is also investing in a camera system that you have in each of the buses you have a camera now that at the headquarters of the NBC they can see where the buses are across the country on a screen and they can also see what is happening in front of the bus and inside of the bus, helping us to monitor for safety and for quality of service and if you go now to the terminal in Belize City you will see that the entrance has been upgraded and you come to the one right here in Belmopan you will see that a significant investment has been made. And I want to thank my colleagues in Cabinet, the Prime Minister for that 2.5 million dollars that has been dedicated to the Belmopan and to the Belize City terminals."
And in other news that came out of Friday's House sitting, it had been a while since we've heard any updates about the People's Constitution Commission and the recommendations they presented to GOB.
Well, the Prime Minister announced that the process is moving forward. He explained that they cannot adopt all the recommendations and that they've classified them into different categories:
John Briceno, Prime Minister "All the recommendations as well were reviewed and analyzed within the context of the existing structure of the Constitution of Belize. Following this exercise, the external constitutional experts then considered the suitability of each recommendation for inclusion in the Constitution of Belize. In this regard the recommendations were categorized as follows. One, category C, the proposed changes constitutional in nature and could appropriately be located in the Constitution. Two, category L, the proposed change may be broadly considered quote-unquote constitutional in nature but does not necessarily belong in the Constitution and are better left to legislation or policy. Three, category U, the proposed change is necessary or inappropriate. And category D, the proposed change is one which required further discussion and debate at the local level. Following the exercise, 53 of the 167 recommendations made by the PCC were identified by the external constitutional experts as being fully, quote, constitutional in nature and therefore could appropriately be located in the Constitution."
"So what is the next step in this process? According to the Act, a resolution is to be put before the National Assembly declaring the matter stated in the report whether the Belize Constitution should be repealed and replaced or amended is of sufficient national importance that it should be submitted to the electors for their view to a referendum. But before such a resolution is put before the National Assembly it seems sensible that the Government engages in a public awareness campaign on these recommendations of the PCC. Again all the recommendations cannot be taken onboard however this consultation process will allow the public a mechanism to review and analyze recommendations, to understand Government's rationale and approach on recommendations and thus allow Government to receive further feedback from the public."
Climate Week began last Friday in Punta Gorda and following the opening ceremony, they signed a Letter of Intent for a strategic partnership between PACT and the Ministry of Sustainable Development. The partnership will establish the Youth Climate Academy, an initiative aimed at equipping young Belizeans with the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to take meaningful action on climate change. Chief Climate Officer Edalmi Pinelo said that youth are their greatest investment when it comes to climate change:
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The launch concluded with the handover of 32 scholarship awards to representatives from various organizations that will pilot the program.
The Government of Belize has renewed its collaboration with Taiwan to strengthen micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) through Taiwan's Belize Women and Youth MSMEs Development Project Agreement. The signing ceremony was held yesterday between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Taiwan Technical Mission in Belize. The initiative is valued at $3 million USD and will assist and provide technical support to women with MSMEs, improving their market access and business operations. Here are the highlights from the signing.
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And we were also planning to ask the Prime Minister about the pressing public issue of high electricity bills.
"These new solar plant projects will come online by the end of 2026 and represent an investment of over $140 million."
"Unfortunately the Saudis have a longer procurement process and more conditions that you have to fulfill. As a matter of fact I think one of their conditions is that you have to use Saudi engineers for many aspects of this project and so that is a little bit more involved."
"So you have to go through and get the design, it takes a year to get the design right and after that you go out for bids and then you're talking about 18 months just to start to get the equipment in because of all the issues with the logistics also there's a strong demand for electrical equipment because of all the data centers that are being built in the United States and around the world so the demand for electrical equipment has gone up significantly which has pushed up the price of the electrical equipment and pushed up the times of these equipment. I'm saying all this to say you hear say, "Well, what happened to this project? From the time you decide to do a project it might be 3 to 4 years before it gets online. In fact the latest estimate we have for the Saudi Project and the Solar Project-the 80 megawatts-we think it might be online by 2029."
And while solar is one thing, corporate governance is another. Can a member of the PUC board, or a commissioner-whose job it is to regulate BEL-also act as a BEL board member-whose job it is to protect and advance the financial interests of shareholders for a private corporation?
"I think we are in very unique difficult circumstances right now, and I've said that, I think one person said it's a crisis and I agreed. I think when we are in this kind of situation we have to work together a little bit, it's not going to be easy but a lot of this is being cause by external things that are happening outside the country that's affecting all of us, not only electricity but like you said the bus fares, the BTL situation or whatever and the reality is that no company can provide good service if it's losing money. So some of what is happening with us is the company is trying to get back on its feet."
For most regular folks, the board's composition is a semantic point: what people really want to know is what's driving up their light bill by tens or hundreds of dollars this billing cycle.
It was a firearm arrest that stemmed from a domestic dispute call, and today we got a chance to speak with the victim who made that call after her ex-common-law pointed a gun at her.
"(And so he came on Sunday, and when I was crossing the gate, he was there, and he threatened me with a gun. So I went and called the police. When the police came and investigated, they started searching him and all that, and they didn't find the gun at his house. They found it here. Then he came, and he told the police that I wasn't being threatened, but I was, he does the same thing to me through the phone, I had seen a small black gun, and he hadn't threatened me with that one. There was a real gun, and then the police took it.)"
Tonight a 5-year-old from Maskall Village has multiple injuries after a dog owned by a fellow villager rushed him while he was walking from his house to his grandfather's home. We spoke with the mother who said she wants justice because her child could have died:
"I'm a little upset because the incident happened yesterday and up to today no one from the house came to see my son, came to check on him, ask about our medical expenses nothing so we're still waiting for that and I doubt it will happen because he said the dog is not his but it's your yard, it's for his grandson or something like that but it's still your yard."
The opposition UDP is getting ready for a municipal election in 8 months-but, tonight, it's going through some changes after high-profile executive resignations. Juliet Thimbriel and Audrey Wallace have separately resigned from their posts in the past two weeks.
The Government of Belize and IDB are hosting a three-day workshop in Belmopan to prepare for a program aimed at improving labor force participation and employability in Belize.
"Today we're having a kickoff workshop session. This three-day workshop session has to do with an IDB project which was approved by the Government of Belize and so the kickoff workshop begins with the implementation phase of the program to improve labor force participation and employability in Belize. So over these three days we're going to have representatives from the Ministry of Finance, we're also going to have representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank, the Central Executing Unit and the Ministry of Immigration, Governance and Labor and other technical specialists who will be reviewing the project's objective, activities and timeline. So the program's overall objective is to increase the supply of labor force skilled in Belize with special attention to women, youth and migrant. This project has two main components. The first is focuses on improving services that help people access the labor force. This includes strengthening the employment services for job seekers and employers, providing specialized support to women, youth and migrant, improving labor market information and introducing modern technology. It will also strengthen the Labor Department's employment unit and support entrepreneurship particularly in the green and blue economy. Now the second component focuses on increasing supply of labor through relevant high-quality training in priority areas. These include tourism, BPO, information communication technology, green and blue economy and also digital skills and child care. The program will benefit Belize by helping job seekers develop relevant skills and access employment opportunities. It will also help employers find suitably trained workers and provide the Government with better information to identify and address labor market needs. Women, youth and migrant who may experience additional barriers to employment will receive more targeted support. The program is an investment in Belize's people. Its success will be measured by the improvement experienced by workers, job seekers, employers and communities and by its contribution to a more skilled, inclusive, productive and resilient labor force."
Police have arrested a member of the Belize Coast Guard and a farmer for a home invasion in Hattieville on Thursday. The duo, 29-year-old Sheffan Devan Hemmans and 46-year-old Alberto Arreaza, are accused of breaking into a home in the Belize American New Site area and stealing a firearm and a $46,000 pickup truck. ASP Stacy Smith gave us the details of that report.
"Police have formally arrested and charged 29-year-old Chefan Hemmans, a Belize Coast Guard officer, and 26-year-old Alberto Artiaga, a laborer of Cayo District for the crime of aggravated burglary. The arrest of Hemmans and Artiaga follows the ongoing investigation into an aggravated burglary report made by a Hattieville resident who reported to police that at around 7:45 PM on Thursday he was at his residence when 2 masked male persons, one of whom was armed with a firearm, entered his residence and demanded that he hand over the key for a black in color 2026 single-cab pickup truck. He complied with this request and the male persons made off with the vehicle. Having been advised of this occurrence the department standard operating procedures were activated and this proved successful. At approximately 9:45 PM the operational team in Santa Rosa, Western Belize, intercepted the black in color single-cab pickup truck and also observed at that time was another vehicle which sped off. The vehicle was pursued and on board that vehicle was Mr. Hemmans. A search of Mr. Hemmans additionally led to the discovery of 50 live rounds of .22 LR ammunition. Consequently Mr. Hemmans was additionally charged for kept ammunition without a gun license."
San Pedro police arrested two men and a woman for a drug bust that happened last Friday.
Police also made another gun arrest in the Belize District over the weekend. ASP Stacy Smith says it happened at a residence in Frederick Alley, Belize City.
Police also uncovered an illegal weapon at a home on Pitter Street. Two persons were charged, but one of them took the rap for the weapon. ASP Smith shared the details of that arrest with us.
The Prime Minister has left the country on personal leave, and the Belize Bus Association has extended the deadline on its threat of a national bus shutdown.
In related news, the Public Transportation Investment Bill was introduced in the House on Friday. It seeks to approve and ratify the Government's investment in the National Bus Company by transferring to and vesting certain assets in the company, for example, the terminals. It will also provide for certain exemptions from taxes and duties proposed to be granted to the NBC.
