Police checkpoints were very active on the highways this weekend –
and they made a major find on the Northern Highway on Saturday morning. They
were conducting a checkpoint in Sandhill at the junction with the Old Northern
Highway when 37 year old Sydney Ellis drove up in a Ford Expedition. He was
accompanied by two Ladyville residents, 31 year old Belizean American Douglas
Stringer, and 23 year old Julia McCord, along with two children, ages three
and five. Their passports showed that they had entered through the northern
border with Mexico on the same day.
Police searched the vehicle thoroughly and inside the glove compartment
they found two aluminium boxes containing US$60,240 stuffed in two aluminium
boxes. On Sunday, the three adults, Ellis, Stringer and McCord were handed over
to the Financial Intelligence Unit and charged with “Failure to Declare
Funds” and “Money Laundering”. They were arraigned in court
today and bail was set at twenty thousand dollars each. But their attorney Dickie
Bradley told Jim McFadzean there’s an easy answer which will be demonstrated
in court:
Richard “Dickie” Bradley, Defense Attorney
”What has been brought to my attention, not only by these clients
but in fact by Mr. William Jewett who was also charged for money laundering and having over $100,000 on his boat that because of the reputation that Belize
has picked up, any body that goes on the internet, our country is becoming like
Jamaica; we have this reputation as being a crime filled country and in fact
it gets worse when we hear that senior police officers are also under heavy
scrutiny for engaging in masterminding and orchestrating things, that the dreaded
MS-13 are here, I hear from street sources that they are now involved in serious
criminal activities. Because of that, businessmen and people coming home and
those who want to do some kind of business are reluctant to stop at any port
of entry and put on a form that I am declaring that I have $10,000, I am declaring
I have over US$10,000, I am declaring I have $57,000. You are putting your life
at risk literally. We need to review that matter to see how people can confidentiality
inform the authorities without putting their lives at risk.
Yes, they said to me this morning when they were brought to court to be
charged that they are prepared to say we did not declare it and they have a
reason for that and they are prepared pay the fine for that but they are not
money launderers. Money laundering connotes some very serious involvement in
criminal activities. People are doing business everyday across the world. Some
are criminals and some are not.”
According to court reports, both of the men met bail, but up to news
time, the women, Julia McCord was unable to. The case is adjourned until the
21st. July. |