Father Killed, Son Loses Leg in Southern Belize Hit-and-Run

An elderly man is dead, his teenage son’s leg was amputated, and the driver responsible is yet to be identified following a hit-and-run traffic incident in southern Belize. Police say the fatal incident occurred on Friday night along the Thomas Vincent Ramos Highway in the Stann Creek District.  According to investigators, shortly before eight o’clock, Independence Police responded to the incident between miles 30 and 31 and found a heavily damaged motorcycle on the shoulder of the road along with two injured male victims nearby.  The victims were identified as 31-year-old Jorge Alberto Escobar Gutierrez, and 13-year-old Imer Alberto Moralez Perez, both of Cow Pen Village. Initial investigations indicate that the father and son were traveling toward the village when they were allegedly knocked down by a vehicle whose driver reportedly fled the scene without stopping to render assistance.  Both victims were taken to the Southern Regional Hospital for treatment. However, Escobar Gutierrez later succumbed to his injuries. Reports reaching our newsroom are that the teenage boy suffered severe injuries resulting in the amputation of one of his legs.  Love News spoke with Jessy Perez, wife of the deceased and mother of the injured teen.

Jessy Perez, Wife and Mother: “I’m here in Belize right now. They amputated his leg from the top, from the socket. They removed his little leg and he only has one left and he had surgery on his stomach. It was a pretty bad blow. They said he turned about 20 feet from where the accident happened. That was what I was told. Well there’s a video, you can see where the accident occurred. He wants to see his dad one last time. He thinks his dad is still next to him. But it’s all trauma that he has in his little head. He doesn’t remember the accident. He only remembers that they were working and he says that they were happy and that they were going to get some chickens to bring them home in the afternoon. I spoke to his dad but I never thought that it would be the last time I saw him on video call. I’m sorry, I’m sorry. And that’s all I’m going through. I don’t have any family here in Belize. I mean, like my mom, my sisters, I don’t have anyone in the village, but thank God that there are such wonderful people that I don’t know but I do have.”

Police say investigations have so far established that two motor vehicles may have been involved in the incident. Officers have since detained a 57-year-old tire repairman of Independence Village, pending further investigations. Police also impounded two vehicles suspected to have been involved in the hit and run.  Love News is following this story./