7 News Belize

Two Lawmen Arraigned
posted (September 13, 2018)

Tonight two veteran lawmen are behind bars at the Belize Central Prison - and they are charged for landing the drug plane on Sunday night in Blue Creek, Orange Walk.  

Today, after a brief back and forth, police took decisive action and charged both Superintendent David Chi and PC Norman Anthony, along with the 2 Mexican nationals caught on the scene, and Blue Creek resident Peter Friessen Jr., who was picked up nearby.

They were all arraigned in Belize City today - and our news team was at court on the frontline. Daniel Ortiz narrates today's arraignment of all 5. Here's that story:

Before he was accused of being involved in narcotics trafficking, the press and public had known Senior Superintendent David Chi as a senior cop, speaking with the press about crimes of urgent national interest.

Here is one such press encounter in July of 2017, where his stern, no-nonsense approach was on display as he discussed the murder of Daniel Sosa:

http://www.7newsbelize.com/sstory.php?nid=41337&frmsrch=1 posted (July 31, 2017)

Sr. Supt. David Chi - OC, Orange Walk Police
"Mr. Ortiz what you are asking doesn't matter or important to me. A person lost his life, we did an investigation, it leads to Mr. Alamilla as the accused right now and he has been charged. Whatever people think or whatever they feel or whatever the political side - that's their business. I am a police officer and I will do whatever I have to do. Let justice be. At the day of the hearing of the trial the outcome - that's it. Justice. That's my job."

But today, in a seismic twist, he was one on the receiving end of a police investigation. The cops say that he, Peter Friessen Jr., from Blue Creek Village and the 2 Mexicans, Eli Figueroa Nunez and Azariaz Silverio Manzano; and

Police Constable Norman Anthony all colluded to facilitate the September 9th landing of the aircraft in the area of Blue Creek Village in the Orange Walk District.

Police caught the plane before the narco traffickers could move their cargo, and the cops ended up seizing 556.2 kilos - or 1225 pounds - of cocaine after an extended firefight between the cocaine smugglers and Belizean enforcement.

All 5 men are charged with the abetment to the importation of cocaine. Chi, Anthony and Friessen have been additionally charged with the aviation offense of conspiracy to land a plane at an unlicensed aerodrome. The Mexicans and Friessen have been charged with drug trafficking for entire cargo of the cocaine found on the plane.

Outside of court, Norman Anthony's attorney wasn't prepared to say much after the arraignment.

Leeroy Banner - Attorney for Norman Anthony
"He has been charged with two counts - I won't want to say anything at this time because the matter is before the court and I think it will be unfair to say what I want to say."

Daniel Ortiz
"Have the police provided any sort of details to substantiate these charges as yet?"

Leeroy Banner
"No, not as yet but the matter is pretty much new, so hopefully before the day is done before next week we will get something to indicate why he has been charged; but so far, nothing as yet."

Dickie Bradley was a bit more forth coming.

Richard "Dickie" Bradley - Attorney for Chi & Friessen
"There are 5 persons who have been charges, there are 4 charges  of which 2 are new - have just been added where the senior police officer who is in charge of Orange Walk police jurisdiction has now been charged. The police officer who the country was told that he was not going to be charged would have been put in police interdiction and taken to a police tribunal has been charged. The additional charges, the police originally charged persons, 2 Mexicans and one Belizean from Blue Creek had been charged for importing drugs into Belize and for drug trafficking and now the additional charges are that it's abetment to import the drugs into Belize and that has been levied against police officer Norman Anthony and Senior Office David Chi and the police has also charged conspiracy to land a plane at an airstrip which is not licensed for landing planes and Norman Anthony and David Chi along with Mr. Peter Friessen has been charged for that. I think one of you pointed out that on the charge sheet for abetment to bringing the plane, the persons who are charged are also charged along with others. So the police are probably looking for others."

The high profile nature of this case was such that the Gang Suppression Unit was called in to escort the men to and from the Magistrate's Court. And as usual, they secured the entrance of Senior Magistrate Aretha Ford's court room, restricting access to the court.

We also saw an unusual figure at court. Speculation was that this man may be Mexican law enforcement, and indeed, he was allowed to carry around his high-powered weapon in the presence of the Belizean cops, lending credibility to this suspicion.

Around the court house, we saw civilians who were identified to us as relatives of the accused men.

These people were reportedly there to show support for the 2 Mexican defendant. They had been at court waiting all morning, unsure if these men would be arraigned here in Belize City, or in Orange Walk.

Richard "Dickie" Bradley
"The family have been told that they would be brought to the Belize City magistrate court this morning and they have been sitting around all day; hopefully they come this afternoon or at least indicate that they are going to Orange Walk. They are way out of the 48 hours that the Supreme Court says you must be taken before a court, no later than 48 hours. In relation to the Mexicans and Mr. Freissen, their constitutional rights have been massively breached in regards to that matter. It's from Sunday night and now we are at Thursday midday."

We did get a chance to speak with the distressed mother of Peter Friessen Jr., who wants her son released.

Maria Friessen - Mother of Accused
"My heart is broken right now for my son, I love my son but really my heart is broken. My grandson and his wife are waiting for his dad."

Reporter
"Ma'am what was he doing out there?"

Maria Friessen
"I don't know but because he's a working guy, he's a decent guy, he never had problems with the law with nothing."

Reporter
"Again, do you know of his whereabouts on Sunday? What was he doing because police are saying that how they detained him out there after 2 that morning on Sunday morning."

Maria Friessen
"I don't know, I can't say that because I don't know."

Daniel Ortiz
"Has he or any member of your family ever been criminally charged before ma'am?"

Maria Friessen
"No sir, never."

But Friessen, the two Mexicans, the two police officers - one of them very senior - will be placed on remand at the Belize Central Prison, a surprising and swift outcome in this drug bust.

They were all arraigned before Senior Magistrate Aretha Ford who denied them bail, and remanded to the Belize Central Prison until November 1st.

Notably, the court ordered police to go to Orange Walk to get medication for Superintendent Chi while he is behind bars.  Chi is 53 with 34 years in the department - two years away from retirement. PC Norman Anthony is 52.

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