The August 17th, 2014 issue of The STAR (Cayo) is online HERE

This Week's Stories:

  • Four Arrested For Parceling A Pound Of Weed:
    Three men from Red Creek and a fourth from Santa Elena were, this Thursday afternoon, arrested and charged for the possession of marijuana when a team of policemen sneaked up on them from behind as they were parceling the merchandise under a coconut tree in the back of a yard. Acting upon information received, at around 2:30 pm this Thursday afternoon, a team of policemen, comprising elements from Special Branch, Crimes Investigation Branch and the Tourism Police Unit sneaked up from behind, along a cement fence, unto a property located at #213 Red Creek, on the eastern outskirts of Santa Elena Town, where they surprised four men assembled under a coconut tree engaged in a suspicious activity with a camp fire burning nearby. The men, all Belizean laborers, were identified as Ricky Diego, 28 and Glenford "Geese" Lewis, 50, both residing on the property as well as Shane Smith, 29, who lives nearby also in Red Creek and Wayne Miralda, 34, who told the police that he lives further up the highway in Santa Elena.
  • Espat Takes The Rap Fined and Confined:
    Four persons from Santa Elena were today arrested on a possession of marijuana charge. The youngest of the four pled guilty to the charge. He was sent straight to jail on a five year sentence along with a ten thousand dollar fine. It was shortly before 10 o'clock on the morning of Friday, August 8, 2014, when a team of policemen, armed with a warrant to search for drugs, descended upon the #148 George Price Avenue, Santa Elena residence of Nelson "Quack" Flores, 30, Belizean laborer. Present with Flores on location at the time of the search were three other persons later identified as Belizeans Alma Reyes, 36; Jose Garcia, 26; and Justin Espat, 19. Both Reyes and Espat told the police that they reside with Flores at the house while Garcia informed that he lives nearby on Coconut Street.
  • Editorial: We See, We Hear And We Read:
    When one travels across the nation, there is no denying that unprecedented development in the nation's infrastructure is happening everywhere like never before. The modernization of Belize City is unquestionable, Mayor Darrell Bradley, with assistance from Prime Minister Dean Barrow and Central Government are transforming the city beyond imagination. In the less than two and a half years since Mayor Bradley was elected to Belize City Hall, he and his team has done more for the city than all previous mayors combined. Amazingly, while the national development is advancing full speed ahead, it is doing so without any increase in national taxes and undue hardships to the thousands of public officers, teachers, doctors, nurses, policemen and soldiers paid by the national purse. Much unlike what is taking place in the region. We see, we hear and we read reports of massive retrenchments of public officers in sister Caribbean states. We see, we hear and we read of moratoriums on new employment of public officers in the region.
  • Burglary, Burglary, Burglary:
    San Ignacio police are this week reporting three burglaries with no arrest. Police are of the opinion that a sneaky burglar is in town. The general public is therefore advised to guard against becoming a victim of burglary. In the first incident, Gerald Armstrong, 48, reported to police that between 6:00 am and 10:00 pm on Saturday, August 2, his house, located on Eduardo Juan Street in Santa Elena, was burglarized. While several items stolen amounted to less than a hundred dollars, the fact remains that someone invaded his privacy and in the process disrespected him. In the second incident, Wayne Bermudez, 50, year old Belizean farmer of a San Ignacio Town address reported to police that his farm house, located behind Eden Resort on the highway leading to Benque Viejo Town, was burglarized on Sunday, August 10.
  • Belize Earns A Host Of Top 100 Readers Choice Awards:
    The August 2014 "Scuba Diving" magazine has outlined Belize as the "Central American paradise" who "earned a host of 2014 Top 100 Readers Choice Awards." Belize earned Readers Choice Awards for the Caribbean and Atlantic's best overall destination, big animals, wall diving, and underwater photography. Some of the highlights from the three-page spread include mentions of our barrier reef "bowing only to Australia's great one." It also talks about the wall dives that can be done along the atolls, which "turn into an underwater Lollapalooza." Also among the highlights was Gladden Spit which placed in the top 5 list for "best big animals in the Caribbean and Atlantic region." Apart from our "big animals," Belize was also recognized for its "macro critters." Belize, known for some of the most authentic experiences, was also pointed out as a destination for tours from luxury yachts, to explorations through the jungle and to the archaeological sites.
  • Marriage Reveals, Not Creates Problems:
    BY: Rick Warren, Aug 3, 2014: "In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery." (Proverbs 28:23 NLT) If you're single and you're prolonging a relationship that you know is going nowhere, don't continue it. "But I won't have anybody to take me out on Friday night," you say. A bad marriage is a million times worse than not going out on Friday night! The longer you're in a relationship, the more difficult it's going to be to get out of it. Proverbs 28:23 says, "In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery" (NLT). Size that person up quickly, particularly related to emotional health. Don't be afraid to ask questions like, "Do you have uncontrolled anger?" "Can we talk about me?" or "Will you pick up the tab?"
  • Police Manhunt For Calderon Brothers Underway:
    Police have detained two suspects and are on the manhunt for two more in connection with a Sunday night, August 3, chopping incident in San Ignacio Town. It was a few minutes to 10 o'clock on Sunday night August 3 when the police were called to the community hospital in San Ignacio. They were immediately directed to the emergency room where a male person was being treated for large chop wounds, one each to both knees and another to the mid section of the body. Preliminary investigation revealed that the victim, later identified as San Ignacio resident, Felix Romero, was at his mother-in-law's house on Flamingo Street in San Ignacio when he went to open the gate for his mother-in-law to enter. Whilst at the gate he was reportedly attacked by four male persons whom he identified as the Calderon brothers: Neri and Gerson along with Leroy Supal and Joshua Concha.
  • Invitation To Support HRCB Fundraising Eve:
    The Human Rights Commission of Belize invites you to support their fundraising event to be held in San Ignacio at the Sacred Heart Auditorium this coming Saturday August 16th 2014 starting at 7:30 p.m.. This event is being done in partnership with the Rotaract Club of San Ignacio and consists of the performance of the hilarious play "Every Rose has Thorns" written by pastor Dillon Burgin. All proceeds go towards the continuation of HRCB's human rights educational trainings and advocacy programs and the Rotaract's Club " Send a child to school scholarship program" Come out and support us.
  • Acne Vulgaris:
    Acne vulgaris (or simply acne) is a common human skin disease, characterized by areas of seborrhea (scaly red skin), comedones (blackheads and whiteheads), papules (pinheads), nodules (large papules), pimples, and possibly scarring. Aside from scarring, its main effects are psychological, such as reduced self-esteem and in very extreme cases, depression or suicide. One study has estimated the incidence of suicidal ideation in patients with acne as 7.1%. In adolescence, acne is usually caused by an increase in androgens such as testosterone, which occurs during puberty, regardless of sex. Acne more often affects skin with a greater number of oil glands; these areas include the face, the upper part of the chest, and the back. Severe acne is inflammatory, but acne can also manifest in noninflammatory forms. The skin changes are caused by changes in pilosebaceous units, skin structures consisting of a hair follicle and its associated sebaceous gland, changes that require androgen stimulation.
  • Two Guatemalan Boys On Remand For Gun and Bullets:
    Two Guatemalan boys were this week captured with a gun and ammunition inside the national territory of Belize. As rangers from Friends for Conservation and Development (FCD) continue the task of protecting the Chiquibul Forest Reserve, there are reports of yet another incursion into Belize by Guatemalans. The report indicates that at around 10:45 am on Monday, August 11, the rangers were on routine joint patrol with soldiers of the Belize Defense Force in the Caracol Archeological Reserve when they came upon a group of four Guatemalan male persons sitting around a fire. Upon reaching the group, two of the men escaped while the other two were captured.
  • Penner and Rojo on Drug Charges:
    Two men are facing drug charges after being connected with a really tiny amount of illegal drugs. They were doing the stuff, police say, in the Welcome Center in San Ignacio when police, acting on information received, pulled up on them. Police first searched the Caucasian man dressed in a long sleeve white shirt with blue stripes and blue jeans pants while the other, instantly identified as Rayford "Rojo" Staine was wearing a black t-shirt and blue jeans pants. A search of the Caucasian man led to the discovery of a transparent plastic bag containing 0.2 grams of cocaine in his left pants pocket, while inside the other front pocket police found two grams of suspected weed. Nothing incriminating was found on Rojo. A search of the area however, inside a flower pot, led to the discovery of 1.3 grams of suspected crack cocaine.
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