| Police says it's a burglary, but if you ask us, we would call it a soft-home invasion, or one daring con-game!
Shirley Chicas, a Belizean Businesswoman of Belize City reported to police that on Sunday whilst at home with her two sons- two men came to her house dressed in camouflage uniforms and identified themselves as Police Officers.
The two men then told Chicas that they were investigating a robbery and demanded that one of her sons hand over his licensed Glock 9mm pistol with 15 live rounds. They also took 3 cellular phones and $1,650 dollars in cash.
Both men then left the house taking all items along with them stating that the items will be placed as exhibit pending the outcome of the robbery investigations.
Well, turns out it wasn't a con, and they were indeed police.
Police Constable Brandon Hertular is currently detained by officers of the Criminal Investigation Branch. He is accused of stealing the firearm and those 3 cellular phones which he allegedly took when he was conducting a police search on a residence.
His family says that he is being wrongly accused of committing this crime because he is currently stationed at the Belize Central Prison. They say that he worked his most recent shift at the prison, and he was at home sleeping, so he could not have gone on any police search, much less steal anything.
They are upset with the investigating officers because he is being treated as a common criminal, yet he has no record.
The family is also upset because they say this is just one of several affronts committed against Hertular. The department made it difficult for him to join, and now the family believes they are trying to railroad his career with this allegation.
Here's what his common-law wife had to say about the situation.
Felicia Gladden - Common-law Wife
"He went to work on Saturday evening at 5:30, and came off at 6 o'clock on Sunday Morning. A rumor started to go around. Other police officers texted Brandon and said that they are looking for him for a burglary, stating that he stole a gun in a house search with 3 cell phones. But the cell phones were not in it until today when they went to search my house. Brandon went to the police officers by himself this morning, and they detained him. After about 10 or 11, they came back with 2 - 3 CIB officers came back and searched my house with Brandon present. And then, they said that he was going to be charged for burglary of the gun and cell phones. So, now we came to say that we want bigger people to look into this because Brandon didn't do anything. They only held him. There is no way that one police officer is going to search somebody's house. It goes by group of people. So, all we want is that they don't charge Brandon for this because he didn't do anything, and we are not into that. People look like other people. The ID parade that they want to put Brandon in, we want them to bring other police officers in camouflage that look just like him with a gold teeth. For example, Usher and Salguero - all of them put together and who wear camouflage, we want them to be place in the ID parade."
Daniel Ortiz
"But, how do you know certainly that your common-law husband is not involved in what he is accused of?"
Felicia Gladden
"From he came home at 6 o'clock the morning - they dropped him home from work because he works at prison. They dropped him off, and he was with my baby and me the whole day until this morning when he decided to go in to the police."
The family says that their latest inside information is that Hertular will be charged by police for this alleged burglary. | 