The April 7th, 2013 issue of The STAR (Cayo) is online HERE

This Week's Stories:

  • Three Months Remand For Accused Drug Traffickers:
    Wednesday, April 3, 2013: Three men busted with weed in Benque Viejo, Cayo, have all been remanded to the big jail in Hattieville. Venturing into the jurisdiction of Benque Viejo police, and acting on information received, a team of policemen from the San Ignacio police detachment rushed into Benque Viejo Town today where at the entrance to George Price Boulevard, they intercepted a white Chevy Malibu car with license plates BZE C-34685 departing Benque Viejo heading eastward to San Ignacio some time around 6:30 pm. The vehicle was stopped and a thorough search of its interior produced nothing incriminating. The police however observed the single back seat passenger in possession of a blue and red bag which, when searched in his presence, was found to contain five black plastic bags tightly wrapped with transparent tape.
  • Policeman Remains In Critical Condition:
    An African American woman is currently on remand at the central prison following a traffic accident involving a motor cycle riding policeman. The police informs that at around 3:30 pm on Tuesday, April 2, police constable #1213, Andy Tun, currently attached to the police substation in San Antonio Village, Cayo, was riding the police green and black, Kawasaki brand motorcycle on Center Road in Spanish Lookout when he collided in the mid section of a blue Ford F350 pickup truck, with license plates CY-C-27525, driven by Gail Wells, who allegedly drove onto the main road directly into the pathway of the approaching motorcycling cop. It is reported that the policeman received head and body injuries and was rushed to the emergency ward at the Western Regional Hospital in Belmopan. He was later transferred to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital in Belize City where he remains in critical condition.
  • Guatemalan Farmer Busted With Gun And Bullets:
    A Guatemalan farmer alleged to have entered Belize illegally was today stopped at a checkpoint and found in possession of a pistol and seven bullets. The incident reportedly occurred at around 8:30 am on Wednesday, April 3, 2013 at a check point on the eastern outskirts of the village of San Jose Succtoz, between miles 71 and 72 on the George Price Highway. Benque Viejo police informed that a taxi cab heading towards San Ignacio, with a single male passenger on board, approached the check point and a search of the passenger resulted in the discovery of a .22 caliber pistol, brand unknown, along with seven live rounds of .25 Aguila brand ammunition.
  • Good Neighbors Prevent Burglary:
    A serial burglar, caught in the act of attempting to break into a house, has been taken off the streets thanks to the assistance of alert neighbors in Santa Elena Town, Cayo. Dorothy Garbutt, 68, Belizean retired teacher of #2 Melhado Street in Santa Elena, reported to police that on Wednesday, March 27, 2013, at about 5:00 pm while at a bus stop in Santa Elena she was alerted by relatives of the report of a man attempting to break into her house. Garbutt rushed home where she encountered the police putting the suspect in the back of the pickup truck as alert neighbors prevented from him from breaking into her house and held him until the police arrived. The suspect Eric Castillo, 39, Belizean laborer of a Santa Cruz address in Santa Elena town was transported to the police station in San Ignacio where he was arrested and formally charged for attempt burglary.
  • San Ignacio & Santa Elena Town Council Revenue And Expenditure For February 2013:
    Property Tax Fee Trade Licensing Fee Traffic License's Fees Peddler's Fees Liquor Licensing Fees liquor Liensing Extension Cemetery Fees Commercial Garbage Fees Banners & billboards Market Restroom Fee Rental of Market Stalls Miscellaneous Rental of Parks & Playgrounds Interest & Staff Loan Cayo Welcome Center Town Revenue
  • Octavia Waight Making Life More Comfort For The Elderly:
    Residents from San Ignacio's Octavia Waight Center for the Elderly were today treated to the annual riverside picnic. Ophelia Pinelo, an employee of the Center informed that today's picnic is an annual tradition of the Center which has been ongoing for over 10 years. She additionally informed that, over the years residents have been taken on visits to various parts of the Cayo District. Twenty five center residents participated in today's field trip which included a fun day of relaxation along the banks of the Macal River. Residents were also treated snacks and lunch all provided by the center.
  • Mexico thwarts 'plot to kill' Monreal brothers:
    The authorities in Mexico say they have prevented the murder of two l eftist legislators, brothers David and Ricardo Monreal. A senior prosecutor said two armed men plotting the murder had been arrested at a hotel in Mexico City. Mariana Benitez said the authorities had seized weapons, communications equipment and a vehicle. No motive was given for the planned attack but the men had already confessed, she added.
  • Man Accused Of Harming Step-Son:
    A Santa Elena man is out on a two thousand dollar bail as he stands accused of causing grievous harm to his step-son. On Thursday, March 28, 2013, Myner Manzanero, 23, Belizean student, residing in the Bradley's Bank area of Santa Elena Town, visited the police station in San Ignacio where he reported that at about 5:30 pm on said date, he was at home when he and his step-father, Orlando Borallos, reportedly got into a heated argument . The complainant told the police that the step-father punched him to the left side of the face, causing him to stumble out of the house. The complainant further alleged that as he regained composure the step father continued punching him in the face and in the process drawing blood.
  • Cuban Ballet Dancers Defect While On Tour In Mexico:
    Seven members of the National Ballet of Cuba defected during a performing tour of Mexico last month. A ballet spokesman confirmed the news, saying only that they had not returned at the end of the tour. The world-renowned troupe, led by legendary ballerina Alicia Alonso, has been hit by defections before. A Cuban exile website based in Miami said six of the defectors were now in the United States, while the seventh was still in Mexico. The head of Havana's National Ballet School, where some of them had studied, expressed her sadness at the news.
  • Argentina Floods 'Catastrophe' For La Plata, Buenos Aires:
    Emergency workers in Argentina continue to try to rescue residents stranded by flooding in Buenos Aires and La Plata. More than 50 people are known to have died after one of the heaviest storms recorded caused flash floods. Thousands were evacuated from their homes and dozens are still stranded on rooftops, treetops and the roofs of city buses, local media report. The government has declared three days of national mourning after what it called "an unprecedented catastrophe". "We've never seen anything like it," provincial governor Daniel Scioli said. "People were taken by surprise, and some didn't have time to escape this deadly trap," Mr Scioli said, referring to the speed with which the waters rose.
  • Male Baldness 'Indicates Heart Risk':
    Men going thin on top may be more likely to have heart problems than their friends with a full head of hair, according to researchers in Japan. Their study of nearly 37,000 people, published in the online journal BMJ Open, said balding men were 32% more likely to have coronary heart disease. However, the researchers said the risks were less than for smoking or obesity. The British Heart Foundation said men should focus on their waistline, not their hairline. A shifting hairline is a fact of life for many men. Half have thinning hair by their 50s and 80% have some hair loss by the age of 70.
  • Body's Anti-HIV 'Training Manual' Offers Vaccine Hopes:
    The body's own "training manual" for attacking HIV has been recorded by US scientists and it is hoped it can be used to design vaccines. HIV mutates in order to survive the onslaught of a patient's immune system. However, some patients develop highly effective antibodies that can neutralise huge swathes of HIV mutants. A North Carolina team analysed the arms race between body and virus, published in the journal Nature, and has shown how these antibodies are made.
  • Youths Who Murdered Mexican Activist Chavez Sentenced:
    A judge in Mexico has sentenced three youths to 15 years in prison for the 2011 murder of Mexican activist Susana Chavez. Ms Chavez was found strangled and with one hand cut off in Ciudad Juarez. She had been a key figure in the community, drawing attention to the killing of mainly poor women in the northern border town in the 1990s. She had coined the slogan "Not One More Death", which became popular at protests against the women's killings. Police found her body dumped in the city centre on 6 January 2011. A trail of blood led them to the home of Sergio Ruben Cardenas, where they found more blood and the severed hand of Ms Chavez.
  • Pact Awards Over $800,000 In Project Grants!:
    On Thursday, April 4, 2013, PACT held a Grant Award Ceremony at the Guanacaste National Park in Belmopan, during which it awarded over $800,000.00 in new project grants! PACT awarded Small and Medium-Sized Grants for projects under the themes of Protected Areas Management and Conservation, Protected Areas Promotion and Development, and Environmental Education and Awareness as follows: PACT is confident that these grants will have great impacts on conservation in Belize and thanks all recipients for their hard work and commitment to their respective protected areas.
  • Four Reports Against The Police:
    Reference report of extortion made by Ms. Anna Mae Nembhard on Thursday 28th March 2013. On Thursday 4th April 2013, at 4:10 pm police constable #132 Frank McNeal was served with disciplinary charge of Act to the Prejudice of Good Order and Discipline> He was placed on interdiction with effect as of 4th April 2013. 2. Reference report made by Ms. Carol James on Tuesday 2nd April, 2013 that when she arrived home from the United States on Saturday 30th March, 2013, she discovered that some jewelries and money was missing from her house.
  • Robbery In Unitedville:
    A near midnight robbery in the village of Unitedville, Cayo, has left a bar owner with a busted forehead, and two male patrons wounded. Marisol Tobar, 35, Belizean businesswoman from Unitedville, reported to police that at around 11:30 pm on Saturday, March 30, 2013, three short male persons of dark complexion, wearing dark clothing and with their faces covered, stormed into her Hill Top Bar. One of them, armed with a handgun, reportedly pointed it her and demanded money. Fearing for her life, Tobar immediately handed over a thousand dollars to the gunmen who reportedly stole her gold chain with a diamond medal, valued at fifteen hundred dollars. The gunman then fired two shots into the bar before all three of them rushed out and disappeared into the darkness.
  • STAR Humor
  • Your Weekly Horoscope and Lucky Numbers
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Public Notices