News 5 Live

29/07/2025

Retired American Robbed at Gunpoint in Orange Walk

A terrifying home invasion in Orange Walk has left a retired American shaken and police on high alert. Around 9:30 on Thursday morning, David Greer was in his yard near mile two on Pine Ridge Road when three men approached him, one of them pressed a gun to his back and forced him inside his home. Once inside, the intruders tied him up and demanded access to his safe. Fearing for his life, Greer gave up the password. The thieves made off with a large sum of cash and a 2022 Toyota Hilux, altogether worth over a hundred and fifteen thousand dollars. After they fled, Greer managed to free himself and call the police. So far, no arrests have been made, and the investigation is ongoing.

29/07/2025

Accountant Charged in Dangriga Fraud Scandal

It’s a case of white-collar crime that’s rocked a well-known business in Dangriga. Jenny Zabaneh of Maya King Ltd. has reported a serious case of financial fraud, missing funds and forged checks that have now led to criminal charges. After a police investigation, authorities have arrested Nasley Somerville, an accountant for Mid-South Investment Ltd., who is now facing charges of theft and forgery. Investigators believe fraudulent transactions happened over the past week and involve several thousand dollars. A routine cheque deposit turned into a full-blown fraud investigation at a Dangriga-based company. Jenny Zabaneh of Maya King Ltd. told police that on July twenty-third, she issued a ten-thousand-dollar cheque to Meridian Enterprise Ltd., signed it, snapped a photo for her records, and handed it over to accountant Nasley Somerville for deposit. But when she later checked the bank’s online portal, something didn’t add up. A different cheque number had been deposited; one she hadn’t signed. Digging deeper, Zabaneh noticed a troubling pattern: while her records showed cheques in the four hundred-series, the bank was processing cheques from a two hundred-series she didn’t authorize. That’s when it became clear, Somerville had allegedly been using two separate cheque books and forging signatures on the unauthorized one. A police search of her office turned up both cheque books and the original cheque, all now in evidence. Somerville, a resident of Pomona Village, has since been arrested and charged with forgery and three counts of theft.

29/07/2025

Court Hits Cane Farmers with Costly Blockade Bill

The Supreme Court has ruled that the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association (BSCFA) and two of its members must pay more than half a million dollars in damages to Belize Sugar Industries Ltd. (BSI) and its energy subsidiary, Belize Cogeneration Energy Ltd. BELCOGEN), for a three-day blockade that brought operations to a halt in December 2021. The court found that the BSCFA orchestrated the protest, which began on December twenty-eighth, 2021, after failed negotiations over a new cane supply agreement. Farmers used their trucks to block access to BSI’s Tower Hill facility, preventing the delivery of cane and the sale of sugar products. BSI claimed over one million dollars in losses, but the court awarded a little over half-a-million dollars, citing that some losses could have been avoided. BELCOGEN, which relies on sugarcane waste to generate electricity, was awarded over forty-three thousand dollars after the court found that it failed to use reserve fuel to keep its plant running. Justice Rajiv Goonetilleke ruled that the blockade was intentional and that BSCFA leadership had the power to stop it but chose not to until a new agreement was reached. The judgment affirms that deliberate interference with commercial activity carries significant legal and monetary repercussions.

29/07/2025

Casino Boss Rima Ray’s Empire Under Fire

We’re following new developments tonight in the ongoing investigation into American casino boss Rima Ray and her operations in San Pedro. The Financial Intelligence Unit has confirmed that Ray’s casino, known as GMK Sky or Caribi Bleu, was never registered with the FIU, despite being legally required to do so. So how did it stay open? Well, it turns out she was granted a provisional license by the Gaming Control Board. But that’s just the beginning. With an unlicensed ATM, stacks of U.S. cash, and now Ray’s arrest in the U.S. on gambling and fraud charges, Belizean authorities are digging deeper into what could be a much bigger story. Here’s News Five’s Paul Lopez.

29/07/2025

Ex-Diplomat Faces Court Over Assault Allegations

Former diplomat Said Badi Guerra is at the center of serious allegations involving the sexual assault of a minor. Guerra appeared in court earlier this week following his arrest in connection with the reported incident at his home in Benque. While he’s currently out on bail, authorities say the investigation is still very much active. The case has sparked widespread concern, not just because of the nature of the allegations, but also due to Guerra’s former diplomatic status.

29/07/2025

UB’s Subvention Increase Falls Short of Ten Million Dollar Demand

After nearly a decade of waiting, the government has finally increased the financial support allocated to the University of Belize, but the dollar amount isn’t exactly what the University was hoping for. The government has pledged to supply an eight point seven-million-dollar subvention to the institution- a one point three-million-dollar difference from the union’s initial demand. Previously, the government claimed that sufficient funds were being handed to the institution, but the union maintained that the university could not operate efficiently under its current conditions. Additionally, the ten-million-dollar demand was not a figure contrived entirely by the union. It was the original subvention provided to the university in 2000 but would later be reduced to eight-point-five million under the previous UDP administration. The People’s United Party then committed to restoring the ten million dollars but have yet to fulfil that promise.

29/07/2025

San Ignacio Town Hall Renamed, But Not Without Controversy

It’s been nearly a decade since the San Ignacio/Santa Elena Town Hall first opened its doors, but today, that building is getting more than just a facelift. It’s also getting a new name: the Earl Trapp Building, in honor of the long-serving mayor. But not everyone is on board with the decision. The renaming has sparked mixed reactions in the twin towns, and now Mayor Trapp is speaking out. We caught up with him today to find out why the building bears his name, and why he says he’s willing to take it down if that’s what the people want.

29/07/2025

Court Visit Turns Costly for Manslaughter Accused

A young man from Lord’s Bank is spending the night behind bars after showing up at court, only to find out he was already wanted. Twenty-year-old Oscar Alexander Galindo walked into the Belize City Magistrate’s Court this morning to ask about his case, but what he didn’t know was that a bench warrant had been issued for his arrest weeks ago. That warrant was issued back in July after Galindo failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing. So, when he showed up today, court officers wasted no time detaining him. He was quickly brought before a magistrate and is now on remand at the Belize Central Prison until his next court date on September fifth. Inside the courtroom, Galindo told the magistrate he had actually come to court in July and was given a new date for August, but he couldn’t remember when. That’s why he came in today to check. Galindo is facing serious charges stemming from a deadly traffic accident in April. He was first arraigned on April eighth for four traffic offenses, including manslaughter by negligence and causing death by careless conduct. Police say he was behind the wheel during a crash that killed nineteen-year-old Denia Ashanti Rowland, a call center agent from Lord’s Bank. The vehicle reportedly flipped several times, throwing Rowland from the car and killing her on the spot.

29/07/2025

Honored Police Officer Killed in Highway Hit-and-Run

A tragic hit-and-run on the Philip Goldson Highway has claimed the life of a police officer, just weeks after he was honored for his outstanding service in law enforcement. Early this morning, thirty-six-year-old Police Constable Arcenio Cus was riding his motorcycle near mile five when a vehicle suddenly swerved into his lane and struck him. The impact wasn’t enough to destroy the bike, but it was enough to take his life. Cus, a dedicated officer from Silver Creek Village in Toledo, had recently been recognized as the most outstanding field training officer in a twelve-week police program. His sudden death is a heartbreaking loss for both his family and the Belize Police Department. Assistant Commissioner of Police Hilberto Romero has more on the investigation and the search for the driver responsible.

29/07/2025

Westby’s 2021 Warning: “Lawsuit Could Be Coming

Let’s take you back to December 2021, here’s what then-BSCFA Chairman Andrew Westby told News Five when we asked him about the possibility of a lawsuit coming out of the blockade.

28/07/2025

News 5 Live

28/07/2025

Greer told police that one of them pressed a gun to his back and forced him inside his home. Once inside, the men tied him up, demanded access to his safe, and stole a large sum of cash.

Read more here: https://www.greaterbelize.com/115k-stolen-in-armed-home-invasion-in-orange-walk/
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Police are investigating a home invasion in Orange Walk where a retired American was tied up and robbed at gunpoint.