Belize trailing in murder count so far in 2020

Published by BBN Staff at June 13, 2020

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Posted: Saturday, June 13, 2020. 4:28 pm CST.

By Aaron Humes: Belize has had 50 murders to date countrywide, as opposed to 66 by the end of June last year, a comfort to police as they seek once again to keep the figures down.

Through the end of May as announced by the Crime Observatory earlier this week, the numbers stood at 48 murders, same as last year; only two – the deaths of Robert Burley in San Ignacio and Sylvio Flores, Jr., in Punta Gorda, have been reported so far for June compared to a staggering 18 last year.

Last year 10 murders were reported in May; this year there have been seven, an uptick from the three reported in April when the country was on complete lockdown.

After 38 murders reported in the first quarter of 2020, (10 in January and 14 each in February and March); there have been just twelve reported in the second so far (3 in April, 7 in May and 2 so far in June). The figures corresponding for 2019 are 32 in the first quarter and 34 in the second quarter, up to the end of June.

Of note is that according to the Crime Observatory, 31 murder reports were observed in the third quarter from July to September and 37 for October to December; if the figures are the same this year the total would still be above 100, a figure Chester Williams and his men are trying to avert.

The State of Emergency and associated curfew end at the end of June, leaving the Police to old-fashioned shoe leather to police the nation in the second half of 2020.

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