American Jailed After Damaging Divine Mercy Church Property

An American national has been sent to the Belize Central Prison after pleading guilty to damaging property at the Divine Mercy Church on the Philip Goldson Highway.  Forty-year-old Nathan Thomas Mikesell, a former member of the United States military who resides in San Pedro, appeared unrepresented before Senior Magistrate Mannon Dennison today. He was fined two thousand dollars plus five dollars in court costs and ordered to pay immediately. After failing to pay, he was taken to prison to serve the five-month default sentence. The charge arose from an incident at the church at approximately five-thirty on Saturday evening. Pastor Robert Scott told police that he was preparing for Mass when he encountered Mikesell inside the building.  According to Scott, Mikesell became aggressive, threatened to kill him and attempted to strike him with a processional crucifix. The pastor was not injured.  Mikesell then allegedly used the crucifix and a pole to damage three hymn books, a bathroom gate and the church’s Divine Mercy statue. The damage to the statue alone was estimated at twelve thousand dollars.  Police were called to the scene and subdued Mikesell before taking him to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital for an evaluation. He was later released into police custody and charged with damage to property.  After entering his guilty plea, Mikesell alleged that police officers had beaten him. The magistrate advised him that any complaint about police conduct should be made to the Professional Standards Branch, as the matter before the court concerned the property damage.