7 News Belize

Guinea Grass Robber Was Wanted For Murder
posted (December 24, 2019)

Viewers may remember the very senseless killing of 53-year-old Jose Hilario Diaz in July of this year. He was the clothes vendor who was shot and killed while he was at his business place in Belize City. Well, police have charged a second man with the offense of murder.

The second defendant is Leroy Haulze, a 23-year-old food vendor of Gaulin Street in Ladyville, who was initially charged with conspiracy to commit murder. When he was brought to court today, that offense was withdrawn against him, and he was informed that he was now being prosecuted for the crime of murder instead. Due to the nature of the offenses, Chief Magistrate Sharon Frazer didn’t take any plea from him, and she remanded him to the Belize Central Prison to a later date.

Haulze is now the second man that police have charged with Diaz’s murder. In July of this year, 28-year-old Emmerson Garnett was also arraigned and remanded to the Belize Central Prison for this incident.

As we reported, Diaz was inside his used clothing store, New 2 U Shop, which is located on the corner of Cemetery Road and Mosul Street. During the busy evening rush hour, a shooter arrived and didn’t say a word to Diaz. He also didn’t try to rob the businessman. Instead, that assailant pulled out a weapon, shot him in the face for some unexplained reason and fled the scene.

Of important note is that Leroy Haulze has also been identified as one of the 3 culprits who tried to rob Zhen Zhen store in the Orange Walk Village of Guinea Grass on Friday night.  You’ll remember that on the night of Friday, December 13th, 2019 they barged into the business place in camouflage outfits, and they managed to rob the owner of several thousand dollars in different denominations and currencies. 

They would have gotten away with it if they hadn’t encountered a mob of vigilantes who helped police to detain them, and arrest them on the scene. You’ll remember that video where police were placing Haulze and his accomplice in the back of a police mobile - after they had been beaten. That’s the clip where the community members were taunting them for daring to travel all the way from Belize City to commit this crime.

During their detention for the Zhen Zhen robbery, police recovered 2 cellular phones, one 9mm pistol with 14 live rounds of ammunition, 1 plastic bag containing $2,100 cash, another plastic bag containing $2,088 cash, and 800 Mexican pesos. The cops say that Haulze turned his weapon on them, and they had to shoot him in the knee to subdue and disarm him. He is facing charges for the robbery, as well as aggravated assault against a police officer, and gun charges for the illegal weapon.

Because of that gunshot injury to the knee, Haulze had difficulty getting to and from the Chief Magistrate’s court for his arraignment this morning. 

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