Belize under State of Emergency to stop gang-warfare

Belize government, to control the increase in gang-warfare, had announced a 30 days lockdown n the capital. Now Belize is under State of Emergency (SOE). The law enforcement authorities have taken the decision.

Chester Williams, Police Commissioner, said that the police had gathered enough evidence to take action on the gang members after they commit crimes. This collection of proofs were also challenging.

The gang members are being arrested by the police staff and Belize Defence Force. These arrests are being made since Thursday. While talking to the reporters, Police Commissioner said that they had also noticed a number of gang-related shootings in the different areas of the city.

Police Commissioner Williams said, “While the police have been able to conduct investigations in relation to these incidents, by the admission of the surviving victims, as well as through our intelligence mechanisms, we have been able to pinpoint who are these persons behind these triggers. But, due to the fact that the surviving victims and witnesses in connection with the cases where the victims pass away, who do not wish to cooperate with the police investigation, when I say cooperate, I mean in terms of giving us what they may have seen in writing in the form of a statement, in order for us to effect an arrest, we have not been able to remove those persons off our streets.”

According to the police, they had found that whenever these criminal activities occur, the relatives of the victims take their own revenge.

While talking to the reporters, Police Commissioner Williams said they had seen several breakneck shootings from these gang people. Now he made recommendations to their minister to instate a state of emergency because they had been unable to remove these people off the streets due to non-cooperation on the part of victims and witnesses.

He said the Cabinet agreed that the best option to deal with the spike in gang-related crimes is to re-instate an SOE.