Elderly Man Dies in Northern Belize, 22-Year-Old Charged with Manslaughter

An elderly man from northern Belize is dead, and a 22-year-old man is behind bars for allegedly causing his death. On Friday, around 10 p.m., 61-year-old Donatilo Cruz was socializing in front of a store in Guinea Grass Village, Orange Walk District.  During that time, an argument unfolded with Diego Santos. According to reports, Santos allegedly pushed Cruz in the face causing him to fall backward, hit his head, and become unconscious. Santos fled while Cruz remained on the ground until a passerby found him around 6 a.m. on Saturday. He was then taken to the Northern Regional Hospital, where he remained in a coma and later passed away after midnight on Saturday. Police detained Santos and yesterday, he was charged with manslaughter. He was arraigned this morning in the Orange Walk’s magistrate’s court and remanded to prison. According to police, Cruz’s body had no signs of injuries or bruises. A post-mortem examination will determine his cause of death. Notably, police couldn’t retrieve surveillance footage from the store because its security cameras weren’t working.