Woman Remanded After Assaulting Nurse at KHMH

A Santa Elena woman is tonight on remand at the Belize Central Prison following a violent incident inside the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, where a registered nurse was allegedly assaulted with an IV pole.  39-year-old Dulce Portillo, an unemployed resident of Santa Elena, Cayo, was arraigned today before Senior Magistrate Mannon Dennison, where she was read a single charge of aggravated assault. The charge stems from an incident on Monday at the KHMH Surgical Ward, where she is accused of attacking Registered Nurse Viviana Lino while the nurse was carrying out her official duties.  In court, Portillo initially attempted to speak in her defense but was cautioned by the magistrate and advised not to say anything that could incriminate her. She was granted bail in the sum of two thousand dollars with one surety of the same amount, along with strict conditions, including no contact with the complainant or prosecution witnesses.  However, Portillo was unable to meet bail and has been remanded to the Belize Central Prison until June 10, when she is due to return to court.  According to police reports, the incident unfolded around 8:15 p.m. when Nurse Lino was alerted that a woman was inside a hospital room physically assaulting a male patient. Upon investigating, the nurse reportedly found Portillo slapping the patient and intervened. It is alleged that Portillo then turned on the nurse, pushing her and escalating the confrontation.  Authorities say the situation intensified when Portillo allegedly grabbed an IV pole and attempted to strike Nurse Lino, who was forced to flee the room and call for security. Police were later called in, and Portillo was detained and subsequently charged.