Police Prioritize Justice for Vulnerable Amid Recent Murders

Assistant Superintendent of Police ASP Smith has emphasized that protecting Belize’s most vulnerable citizens, particularly the young and the elderly, remains a top priority for the Belize Police Department.  Speaking on the latest developments, ASP Smith said the police remain fully committed to bringing justice for victims and their families, stressing that every available resource is being applied to ensure those responsible for recent homicides are held accountable.  She made specific reference to the ongoing investigations into the murder of Wayne Myles and Eric Reyes, describing both cases as priority matters for the department. 

Stacy Smith, Assistant Superintendent of Police: “Well, a phrase or often stated phrase that I like to listen to or like to take into consideration is the one that says the hallmark of a society or the greatness of a society is determined by how they treat their elderly and the young who are both categories of, you know, persons who are considered vulnerable. What we have seen over the past few days are incidents that involve persons who fall directly into these categories in terms of the shooting death of Mr. Miles, 61 years old, though he was very agile and he was out there. He was a person who was up in age. And now we also see the shooting of the very young 15-year-old Mr. Reyes. The department remains resolute in its commitment to fighting crime and we often and have to continue to implore members of the general public to cooperate with us. As it stands now, the police department has already commenced its anti-crime operation and we have taken persons who were traditionally in the administrative roles to put more persons in the street, in the hopes that this serves deterrence purpose that it is intended to serve.”

ASP Smith assured the public that dedicated teams are actively working to gather evidence, follow leads, and maintain close collaboration with prosecutors as police move toward building solid cases