This morning, a Belize City family from the Fabers Road area visited our office begging us to put their story on the news.
This family claims that their neighbors have been harassing and threatening them with violence, and that they don't feel that police are adequately addressing it. So, rather than wait for this dispute to fester and get worse, they wanted to voice their concerns in the hopes that the authorities are listening.
Christopher McCoy tells us that he, his common-law wife, and his 4 children moved to their new home in the Fabers Road area several months ago. Recently, his children have been getting into unwanted confrontations with their neighbors, who they say have wrongfully accused them of stealing.
He said that he turned to the police to address it in the hopes of keeping the peace, but from their perspective, the responding cops did not properly address the situation.
So, they're scared to go home, and for the last few days, they've camped out at a different location. Here's McCoy explaining that he's frustrated with this dispute because he and his family don't want any problems:
Christopher McCoy - Worried Parent
"Where we live, sir, we've been there for about 6 to 7 months, and since we've lived there, we've been accused certain neighbors that my kids are taking things out of their yard, my kids is stealing bike."
"We are a poor family. We don't look for trouble. I teach my kids not to steal people's stuff, and not to disrespect people's property. My children have never done anybody anything."
"The pass few days, my children have been threatened. They've been aggressed by the neighbors in a manner that was totally uncalled for and unnecessary."
"They told us that that if my kids go back into their mother's yard, they will hurt my kids. My children didn't go into their mother's yard. My kids didn't touch anything from them. They told the police that my kids stole crates of pint bottles, and a bicycle. There is no concrete evidence behind that. I feel like they are cooking up some false allegations to make my kids' lives more miserable. The little peace that they had in the house that we were in, they turned it into a big piece of misery, because my kids don't feel safe there anymore."
"My family and I are not these people's enemies. We don't know those people. We are just trying to live in a society that we are forced to live. We're a poor family. We face some of the same challenges that I'm sure these people face everyday, trying to survive. So, why would they want to make that harder for me and my family."
"We gone sleep in the bush for the last 2 - 3 days. These kids eat dry bread because these people make them."
"I don't know if this is the price we have to pay because we are humble, black, and poor. All I'm asking the people, please leave us alone. We don't want any problems."
McCoy told us that when they reported these confrontations to the police, several officers showed up, and when they went to question these neighbors, these persons tried to paint his children as the bad guys, accusing them of stealing pint bottles and a bicycle.
He says that he will continue trying in the hopes that he and his family can safely return to their home.
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