Belize Police Successfully Recover Missing M4 Commando Rifle from BDF

An intense operation by the Belize Police Department has led to the recovery of the missing M4 Commando rifle belonging to the Belize Defence Force (BDF).  The rifle went missing some ten days ago from the Belizario Camp in the Cayo District.  An investigation was launched, and several soldiers were placed on confinement.  News surfaced last night that the rifle was recovered.  Love News has confirmed with Commissioner Chester Williams that the weapon was found in Belize City.  

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police: “Police had conducted an intense investigation and based on some information that were obtained we were able to locate that firearm in an abandoned lot in Belize City. We were hoping that we could have been able to identify who had it there, but so far we have not been able to do so. The weapon is currently in police custody as we continue our investigation at the conclusion of which we might decide to hand the firearm over back to the BDF. At this time, no, we don’t have anybody that we can per se charge. Certainly though I’m aware that the BDF may look at taking internal action against certain of their members who we believe are involved in the firearm disappearance. Again, it goes to show that as much as there are those out there who want to say that the police is not doing enough or is not working the police have been working extremely hard. We have had a number of events over the past months which were all policed by the police. And those events went without no incidents. And again we have this very high-powered weapon, which have catastrophic effect that went missing and again through the good work of the police, we were able to find that weapon and get it off the streets.”

One source to our newsroom indicate that a young soldier who was shot a few years ago in Belize City, may be one of persons of interest in this matter.  Upon the news of the missing rifle from the Belizario Camp, former Minister of National Security, Michael Peyrefitte, told the media that when something like this happens could only lead to a breakdown of trust within the military, and a serious public concern.

Michael Peyrefitte, Former Minister of National Security: “It is always a concern when that happens. And it’s bad enough that you would have a high-powered weapon on the street. The major concern to me is the breakdown in trust within the organization that dealt with the security of that weapon. It’s very difficult for a civilian to walk onto Camp Belizario and just leave with a high-powered rifle. The concern is always is whether or not there is a breach by one of our own an inside job, essentially. We always are concerned about the possibility of inside jobs leading to these things going missing because then once it is proven that it’s an inside job you wonder what else aren’t we compromised about and what areas are we not compromisable? It becomes a huge constraint, becomes more than just the weapon. It’s bad enough that the weapon is out there. We want to know what is the extent of the breach if it goes beyond just that one weapon or if it is just limited to that.”

As we noted, the weapon has been found, and Police are continuing their investigations into how it was removed from the camp, and by whom.