Belize Defense Force Soldier Maims Colleague: Private Bit Off Ear in Heated Fight

Tonight, a private of the Belize Defense Force (BDF) is facing criminal and internal charges after he maimed a colleague during a fight on Monday. Reports indicate that two soldiers at the Fairweather Camp in Punta Gorda got into a heated exchange that escalated to maim. During the on-base rumble, Private Mario Kib lost one of his ears after Private Orville Che reportedly bit it off.  According to Deputy Commander of the BDF, Colonel Anthony Velasquez, Kib did not report the incident immediately, and Che had gone into hiding, but was eventually found.

Colonel Anthony Velasquez, Deputy Commander, BDF: “Preliminary reports came in early in the morning from the Commanding Officer at Fairweather Camp that a soldier was found bleeding and wandering around the barracks lines, right? So they took him to see the medic and they found that he was injured and they checked the area and they found this piece of his ear on the ground, right? So the battalion commander then informed the police of the incident because apparently this soldier was, well preliminary reports that this soldier and the alleged perpetrator, another soldier, were socializing or hanging around talking, you know, and it led to some sort of altercation. The alleged perpetrator was nowhere to be found. The police got involved and we eventually got both of them to the police station to give their statements. The police will press charges, I would assume. However, the BDF as well will hold both of these individuals accountable to our justice system and that is where we stand right now.”

Reporter: Any indication if alcohol was involved? 

Colonel Anthony Velasquez, Deputy Commander, BDF: “At this point in time, there is no evidence to the best of my knowledge that alcohol was involved. But I can’t rule it out but to the best of my knowledge there is no evidence of that so far.”

We were unable to confirm if the two soldiers have been placed on administrative leave./