Man fined $400 for using boss’ chainsaw to steal bicycle back from his brother

Posted: Tuesday, April 22, 2025. 7:33 pm CST.

By Breaking Belize News Staff: A 44-year-old construction worker from the Belama Phase 2 area was convicted in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court on Monday for going equipped to commit theft, after being caught using his boss’s chainsaw to cut a lock off a bicycle he claimed was stolen from him by his own brother.

Giovanni Cardenas appeared unrepresented before Magistrate Ludlow Black, where he pleaded guilty to the offense and gave an explanation. The charge stemmed from an incident on Sunday, April 20, 2025, when police officers on patrol along Euphrates Avenue spotted Cardenas attempting to cut a chain securing a black female beach cruiser bicycle to a burglar bar.

According to police, when approached, Cardenas admitted, “They thief my bike so I come get it back.” He explained that the bike had been stolen from his residence — which also serves as his worksite — after he allowed his brother to stay over for a few nights. He claimed the bicycle was his, identified by a marking on the frame, and that a woman had told him where to find it.

Unable to provide any proof of ownership or documentation, Cardenas admitted to using his boss’s chainsaw to cut the lock in an attempt to retrieve the bicycle. Despite his claim of trying to recover stolen property, Magistrate Black found his explanation unconvincing and emphasized the seriousness of using someone else’s tool to commit a criminal offense.

Taking into account his early guilty plea and the non-violent nature of the offense, Magistrate Black imposed a non-custodial sentence — a $400 fine plus $5 cost of court, payable by May 23, 2025. Failure to pay will result in four months’ imprisonment.

The Magistrate warned Cardenas that he was lucky the situation did not escalate into something more dangerous and advised him to resolve such matters through legal channels in the future.

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