Convicted Killer Get Off After Six Years

In 2018, Albert Jones confessed to the murder of Alaine Garcia - he told police the dead man was haunting him nightly by appearing above his bed.
Tonight though, only 6 years later, the 51 year old Jones is at home with his family - after a High Court judge set him free.
Things took a turn in his case when he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter two weeks ago.
And today before Justice Nigel Pilgrim, Jones was sentenced to time served for manslaughter.

That means after 6 years he was free to go - here's the moment as he walked out of the courtroom:

Marcel Cardona, Jones' Attorney
"Justice Nigel Pilgrim has decided this morning that he believes that in Albert Jones' circumstances, a sentence of six years is proper and given that Mr. Albert Jones has already served six years in jail, then it's basically time served, right. And Albert Jones was therefore ordered to be released immediately."

Reporter
"Tell me how it feel."

Albert Jones, Release from Prison
"Sweet. praise God."

Marcel Cardona, Jones' Attorney
"The very gentleman who he is accused of murdering was the gentleman who had physically abused his kid, Albert Jones Jr. about two and a half months earlier. So apparently, Albert, who was also suffering from mental health issues, as was certified by the chief government psychiatrist, Dr. Alejandro Matus, decided then and there that, well, you know something, he was going to end any further threat to his son by ending the guy, which is what happened then and there. And the court took all of those different factors into consideration, including the ailing health of the defendant, Mr. Jones, and decided to sentence him to manslaughter to six years imprisonment with consideration for the time already served."

Notably, Justice Pilgrim said the starting point for manslaughter in Jones' case was 15 years but he deducted 6 years and 9 months after he looked at the mitigating and aggravating factors of the case, leaving him with 8 years 3 months. Justice Pilgrim was also of the view that Jones is not a danger to society and so the court also awarded him a one - third deduction for his guilty plea, leaving him with 6 years - which was his time served on remand.

Bush Fire In Ontario Burns Broaster's Cabin

Since his retirement from the Belize Police Department, former Deputy Commissioner Edward Broaster has been keeping busy with the construction of his home and the start-up of his food business. But his ambitions don't end there, since he is planning to become the owner of an ecolodge.
Except now, his plans have suffered a major setback since a forest fire destroyed his wooden cabin in the Cayo district, along with a sizable supply of building materials.
It was a preventable loss, but those that started the fire couldn't contain it. Now, Broaster must start from scratch - again.

Courtney Menzies spoke with him today and has this story.

This majestic hilltop in Ontario Village is where retired police officer, Edward Broaster, dreamed of building an ecolodge with a commanding view of the Cayo countryside. But a fire over this weekend changed all that. On Saturday, two persons set an agricultural fire some quarter mile away without implementing proper safety procedures, and the wind cause the flames to devour the dry jungle surrounding the hill. The fire made its way up the hill, leading to a devastating loss of more than $70,000.

Broaster told us today that he hasn't been able to calculate exactly just how much was lost in this fire.

Edward Broaster, Retired Police Officer
"When I went there Tuesday, I saw my cabin that I built from 2020 burnt to the ground with material for another cabin that was under it burnt up as well. My water storage tank, my palapa that I built for the kitchen area was burnt to the ground. So he told me that they knew who did it, who had set the fire and I made a report to the police initially. I am yet to give them my formal report because I'm still remember valuable stuff that I had in the cabin and as well the materials that were under the cabin."

"When I built the cabin at first it was just to have a little getaway. If you would see the scenery around the area that my cabin was constructed on, it's a real beautiful view of the northern and southern hills. There's like, I think 270 degree view of the surrounding areas, Spanish Lookout being seven miles down below and so forth. And throughout the years I said when I retired I would build an ecolodge, hence the reason I had more materials to do another cabin."

But even though his dream was incinerated, he's not letting that stop him from building his ecolodge, and he's hoping those same fire starters will help to construct.

Edward Broaster, Retired Police Officer
"I still plan to do the ecolodge, I went to register the name just yesterday and hopefully with my two hands I will be able to salvage some of the wood as well which hurts me dearly because a lot of huge trees have fallen onto the property due to the fire. We had troops of monkeys and so forth on the property and I hope they would return when the rainy season comes our way. But it's complete devastation."

"I will leave it in the hands of the police like I said and from what I was made to understand, the individuals that set the fire don't have the means to cover that loss that I have endured and so I will probably try and seek through the courts to do some compensation through labor."

The cabin was not insured.

Fire Department's Hands Full With Forest Fires

And if you've been traveling along the Western or Southern Highways over the past couple of months, you'll notice that bush and forest fires have become a lot more frequent - with major smoke output.

And this is normal during the intense dry in April and May. Station supervisor at the National Fire Service, Kenneth Mortis, says he believes the hot weather started a lot earlier this year, and while there aren't as many house fires, their phones have still been ringing off the hook.

Kenneth Mortis, Station Supervisor, NFS
"When the bushfire calls have increased it also puts a threat to structures surrounding these open vegetation, these rural areas that always proves as a setback, so to speak, for the fire department in terms of respond time we're at how many trucks do we have available at these stations versus your location and you all know as much as I do what the fire service internal fighting setup is all about. You all know the amount of trucks that we have at each location. It's a continuous effort that we know like I keep saying, we know the job that we sign up for and we know what it entails. It's something that it just pushes you to keep pushing. It's not something that we overlook. It's unfortunate because somebody calls comes in and we directly can't respond to them because we are busy most of the times. It has become a common practice for calls coming out of Maxsboro especially you're looking at the eight miles community and these are areas that as close as they may be they are yet far away because we are we also need to be prepared for the event of a structural fire, the event of an RTA and our resources is extremely limited, but we keep doing the best with what we have."

Reporter
"Apart from the heat wave starting earlier as you mentioned do you notice that there is a more frequent out of control fires?"

Kenneth Mortis, Station Supervisor, NFS
"Quite a bit. You know it is at this point where some of the calls have even reached my phone directly."

"Actually, calls of this magnitude have reached most of our senior management level. The one that I draw a huge amount of caution to are those ones that comes in in the evening hours we get. Those calls are around 8-8:30pm. You know, there's a bushfire over this location. Once we respond and that fire is out, then that means our visibility becomes next to nil. We literally then have to deal with whatever wildlife that comes out of this bushfire."

He added that if you see a fire in the morning, you should alert the Fire Department as soon as possible, rather than wait until night-time.

Firefighters Tackle 3 Mile Long Blaze In San Pedro Columbia

And in San Pedro Columbia, Toledo, firefighters have been battling a forest fire for over three weeks. It has resulted in the loss of wildlife, cacao crops, and thatch houses.
The fight has been led by volunteers with support from NEMO and the Fire Department.

But, the Department's resources are limited, especially in the south, and today Mortis gave us an update on the situation.

Kenneth Mortis, Station Supervisor, NFS
"We were in dialogue between some of the other agencies and the fire department in that exact jurisdiction because it is a concern, you know, it is a concern whereby all these bushfires at the end of the day consume somebody's house."

"And the go-to guy will be the fire department. And if you look at San Pedro Columbia versus where the fire station is at in what we call in Town, that's miles, that's at least 17 miles. And the road isn't always traversable."

"You know, we'll be running around some smooth highways. We'll be using rough roads and looking at the weight of our trucks that we have. You know, we got to proceed with caution. We are already limited to a certain extent."

"So we don't want to be running through the off roads to respond to our bushfires because we know your house is at risk. So I believe starting today, that leads through this entire season, then those other agencies, like I said, they're in dialogue with the fire department."

"If it's something that they need the manpower, we have that. If it's something that they need to look at the water resources, then that's something we need to look at carefully. But it's a matter that we are already addressing as of morning and we'll see how it goes from there."

No Generator For Fire Department Means No Calls During Blackout

And apart from the bushfires, the constant blackouts have also made the Fire Department's job a lot more difficult. Despite being an essential service, they do not have a generator, and that affects their phone lines. And on top of that, when BWS cuts off the water, they're unable to refill their trucks.

Kenneth Mortis, Station Supervisor, NFS
"The effect with that is once we are out of electricity, then there is no means for us to receive calls of an emergency, everything goes down. Our one-hour backup battery supply that we have, that only lasts another once that goes down."

"So the entire phone line system is down. Our communication during that time is via runner, whether it be somebody comes into the station and informs of a fire, there's no other way. And even more so, the other utility company, when BWS or when the country or when the city experiences loss of water, for whatever reason, that impedes our firefighting tactics as well."

"While we will defensively fight fires with whatever type of water we have, whether it be the sea, the canal, the rivers, but when we return to the station, we need to refill up with water from the hydrant."

"And if the city is out of water, then we need to do the drastic measures, which would probably fill the tank with saltwater from the sea, which we all know it corrode the tank, and we don't know how long when these are utility goes out, how long it's going to take."

"I think it was sometime last week, it was almost close to 24 hours without water. During that time, we had an emergency response whereby a sofa in a yard near the wesley church, that sofa was lit on fire by passers by."

"The guys had previously returned from an emergency, and we were in the middle of filling up from the hydrant. The water pressure is like super slow. That took us like three times the amount of time to fill."

"So these are the variables that we're looking at when we have a shortage of electricity, shortage of water supply, you know, everything has a trickle-down effect, and no doubt we are right in the middle of a trickle-down effect."

"So whether it be the loss of electricity, we can't receive emergency call. If there is no water in the city, we can't fill your tanks the way we should. And then that good old negative, cliche you always hear we no have no water, comes into effect."

Convicted Attorney's Condition Worsens In Prison

Attorney Oscar Selgado was back in court today as his mitigation hearing continued. The defense presented 7 witnesses who testified to Selgado's character, hoping to get him a light sentence, or maybe even a custodial one. However, as the proceedings continue, Selgado's medical condition worsens, and his attorney, Arthur Saldivar, explained that if his family doesn't deliver food to the prison every day, he cannot eat. Selgado also revealed in court that this has proven dangerous for at least one of his relatives.

Arthur Saldivar, Attorney
"The character witnesses for Mr Selgado came and testified as to how they know him, the kind of person he is and why it is they believe he should be given or shown mercy by the court."

Reporter:
"You also intend to call a medical practitioner on behalf of Mr Selgado?"

Arthur Saldivar, Attorney
"Yes a doctor had given a report detailing the condition that Mr Selgado is in and in so far as that person also works in an establishment, he would have required a subpoena to make it to court hence the reason the court adjourned today in order to facilitate that process to have him be here to come and testify."

"He's a chronic diabetic, he struggles with his condition. There's the problem that he has where the food is not adequate for him and as a result, he's relying heavily on his family to bring him food that he can actually eat. Outside of that there is a problem because there is no doctor available 24/7 at the prison so especially on a day like today, until Monday, Dr Novelo who is the only one, would not be there. So if something should happen to him while Dr Novelo is not there, there's no one to attend to him other than an inmate who is not capable of providing medical care. Furthermore, for some strange weekend his family cannot give him food over the weekend so Saturday and Sunday he has to either not eat or simply eat what is given to him at the prison which is processed food and anybody who has diabetes knows you cannot eat processed food, bologna, hot dogs, that's not what you want to have a diabetic person eat."

"I believe his nephew Kevin had gone to the prison to drop off food on Mr Selgado's behalf and on the way back home to Punta Gorda was caught in the accident, himself and his girlfriend both died."

Reporter:
"Your client is asking for non-custodial sentence, what is the actual likelihood that he would get that?"

Arthur Saldivar, Attorney
"I can't speak to likelihood, all I can say is that within the law, there are provisions that would allow for it and it is now our task to bring forward reasons that the court can consider in bringing itself to a position like that."

The mitigation hearing continues on May 23rd.

PUC Regulations Standing In The Way Of A Solar Solution?

Belize is emerging from its power crisis - but just barely. And San Pedro continues to hover at maximum capacity almost daily. In fact, the tourist capital of the country often seems like its one blow dryer away from plunging into another blackout.
And while all the talk has been about the return of the diesel powered gas turbine at Westlake, and another big diesel unit that's being commissioned San Pedro - any expert on renewable energy will tell you that when it comes to power supply, Belize is like a man dying of thirst in the heart of a wetland.

That's because Belize has abundant solar energy which can be harnessed at homes and businesses - and pushed back into the national grid to act as a viable and stabilizing power source. But today a group called the Belize Solar Industry Alliance says a new law pushed out by the PUC is standing in the way of a solar solution and Belize's energy independence. Jules Vasquez has more:

Here at Running W Meats on the George Price Highway, the goats may seem like they're taking some shade, but look closer and you'll see a 180 kilowatt solar array.

It's a part of the company's sustainable energy plan - and works with these grid tied inverters to manage the operation's energy needs - seamlessly switching between solar energy - when it is available, and BEL's power supply when it is not.

A systems like this costs upwards of half a million dollars - and the man who designed this one, Jeremiah Allen says - with the present regulatory framework recently enacted by the PUC - he's not sure he would encourage any business owner to make such an investment:

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"So the legislation as it exists right now, it discourages future solar development. And those who have already invested in solar are not going to experience as good of returns as they they would like to."

The main problem - as a group called the Solar Industry Alliance sees it - is what's called a demand charge which BEL will assess on solar energy producers - even at the household level.

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"They are going to assess and attribute a fee on your monthly bill that is almost impossible to predict. Many households, it could easily be between $150 to $300, some even higher. Even month by month by month. It will be impossible to predict what that's going to be on your monthly bill."

So, here's how it works at the micro level: you set up your solar panels - a basic 10 kilowatt array will cost you about 25 thousand dollars. With an inverter like this you tie it into BEL's grid - and during the day when the solar is producing you can sell them energy at 13 cents per kilowatt hour. At night you buy from them at 35 cents per kilowatt hour. At the end of the month you net off what you sold them against what they sold you. But the transaction doesn't end there:

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"But then there's that demand fee on top of that. And I think in many cases, for the average homeowner wanting to put solar in their home, it's going to net a increase in their monthly bill rather than a decrease."

Jules Vasquez
"It's going to end up costing you more?"

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"In many cases, it will."

"So if a homeowner were to install ten kilowatts, which is roughly capable of producing somewhere in the range of $400 worth of electricity per month, so to reduce your bill by $400, now that's during sunny hours."

"However, with the demand fee that comes in the evening, those $400 of savings could easily get squished down to $100. And if you spend $25,000.00 on a system like that, approximately the going rate for a ten kilowatt system, divide that by $100. You're talking about 250 months return on investment. In that particular example."

Jules Vasquez
"250 months is 20 years."

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"Over 20 years."

Jules Vasquez
"That makes no sense."

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"It doesn't make any sense."

And that's why the Solar Industry Alliance put out this press release and sent a petition to the PUC to try and have the regulations structured in a way that does not disincentive solar production:

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"And what I'm what I'm saying is that in many cases, it's not going to make sense. And I have already advised some of my clients to put their plans on hold because I can't honestly tell them this is a good idea for you."

And for those who have already invested in solar panels like this one - with the current regulations - it's cheaper for them not to sell power into the grid.

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"So most solar systems that you see installed around the country, including the one right behind me, have capability to produce excess and feed that excess into the grids to support the Belize National Grid. However, up until this point, they have been penalized for pushing power back into the grid."

"And so all of them have current blockers to prevent that power from going back into that grid."

"I have 12 different companies signed on with Belize Solar Industry Alliance who are part of the signers of this petition who are saying we can go flip a switch and we can provide power for up to about 250 homes around Belize right now with the existing installed base."

Jules Vasquez
"So right now with this grid behind us, if they said, man, our country's in crisis, please let me share this excess, it would end up costing them more."

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"That's correct."

And so, right now for this developer at least, solar is mostly a dead end street - even in an abundantly sunny environment:

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"I believe Belize has such ample access to sunshine. We have such an amazing opportunity to be independent, to be self-sustaining. As a nation, we shouldn't be relying on imported energy."

Jules Vasquez
"It's amazing to me that what is being proffered as a solution and everybody should say hallelujah and indeed we're all grateful because the load setting was killing us, is that we are bringing dirty diesel power fully back on line, in a country of such abundant resources. This is really a regressive way of thinking."

Jeremiah Allen, BELIZE SOLAR INDUSTRY ALLIANCE
"It's a shame, really, if if we would have been more proactive in putting in place a proper regulatory environment and a legislation ten years ago this this country would already be covered in solar."

Utilities Minister Says New Law Creates Energy Market

Of course, we also accept that Allen has a business interest in seeing less regulation - so for the other side of the story, we today caught up with Minister of Public Utilities Michel Chebat. Not surprisingly he has a totally different take on the law - he says it actually opens up the energy market.

We asked him about the claims made in the Solar Alliance's release:

Reporter
"They say "useful solar power has been wasted because solar-producing businesses and homeowners are charged by BEL if they export their excess production back into the grid and that new legislation has been introduced which includes tariffs that disincentivize future grid- friendly solar production. Your response?"

Michel Chebat, Minister of Public Utilities
"Absolutely not the new legislation is actually geared to opening up the energy market the energy sector and it is exactly intended for that so that people who are now using solar panels on their homes in their businesses may have an opportunity to sell the excess into the national grid so it is quite the opposite of the statement."

Reporter
"They say the new legislation will discourage the uptake of grid-tied solar in Belize. Your response?"

Michel Chebat, Minister of Public Utilities
"No, absolutely not. It is intended to have the excess go into the grid."

Reporter
"Speak to us on the idea of leveling the playing field in a manner speaking to provide equity in this particular industry?"

Michel Chebat, Minister of Public Utilities
"Listen, so I think this is for the first time in Belize in the history of Belize you see a piece of legislation that is actually opening up the energy sector and I think that is important because it has been dominated so far by BEL so what this legislation does it really opens up the fields for even new power producers. It opens it up so people at their homes individually and people who want to use for their businesses and people who want to use for their industrial sites now link to the national grid and so for the first time in our country we are seeing where the energy market is being opened up to the entire public."

Utilities Minister Says Solving Capacity Crisis Not About Casting Blame

And while the solar debate is just starting - we shouldn't let it distract from the larger debate of how the country got into this power starved situation in the first place.
As we have reported, 11 years ago, the PUC put out a request for 75 megawatts of new power generation. More than a decade later, we have 8 more megawatts. That was a big fail, and in a recent article - the Chairman of BEL Andrew Marshalleck says the capacity crisis certainly is not BEL's fault since the company is strictly tasked with power transmission and distribution - not generation.

He seems to suggest - not outlandishly - that it's the PUC who dropped the ball. We asked Chebat to respond to his comments:

Jo-
"In the article published earlier this week - the chairman of BEL seemed to put the blame for the current power crisis on the PUC when he said, quote "Since 2013, the system for managed competition has not only failed to produce cheaper sources of power for Belizeans but it has failed to make such sources of power available any at all." Is the PUC and its regulatory environment to blame for the current power crisis?"

Michel Chebat, Minister of Public Utilities
"Listen there is enough finger pointing but this about finding solutions for the crisis that we are facing. The PUC has the authority under law as the regulator and they have the authority to fix prices at an electricity rate based on representations made by BEL so I think it is unfair to point the finger in the direction of the PUC."

Families Minister Says Teacher Rape Betrays Fundamental Trust

In other news...
We send our children off to school, and trust that they are in the safe hands of their teachers, but one particular case in Toledo has deeply troubled parents, and an internal investigation at the school.
A 50 year old teacher is accused of raping a 13 year old student in the school bathroom. He has been charged and arraigned.

When we asked the Minister of Human Development about it today she said that there is nothing more heinous than a teacher taking advantage of a student.

Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human development
"Now that one you would almost want to lock up the offender and throw away the key mind you everybody is entitled to a fair trial but really that means that we have so much work to continue doing because a 50 year old teacher and what makes it so much more heinous is that a teacher is in the position of trust. A teacher is in a position of trust and responsibility and to know that a teacher is accused of raping a student that is really really beyond the pale."

"I think that we have to continue and fight and struggle and make sure that victims come forward and I think it is good that the young lady involved came forward with the mother or the grandmother so these things need to be reported and of course we need to hold perpetrators accountable."

14-year-old Girl Beaten By Her 18-year-old Boyfriend, But Parents Will Also Be Charged

And in another disturbing piece of news about a minor being abused, there is the case of the 14 year old minor who was beaten up by her 18 year old boyfriend whom she was living with in Independence village.

The boyfriend was charged for harm but the Minister says that the 18 year old is not the only one who will face the judge; her parents are expected to be charged as well. She explained why.

Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human development
"This is one of a fourteen year old girl who does not have the age of consent with an 18 year old young man so it is a crime that has been committed and to make it even worse is the physical violence you know. Not only the sexual abuse but also the physical violence so again we have to hold perpetrators accountable I would say though that an 18 year old guy it's a little bit different that a 50 year old teacher so you may have some mitigating circumstances there however I want to mention that recently the director of public prosecution has ordered charges in a different case of. A 14 year old girl who is pregnant at the moment I think she is soon to have a baby and we had to remove her from the guy that she was living with in San Pedro but the parents allowed the 14 year old to go and live with the guy in San Pedro and it is possible that some money was being sent to the parents. Now if that is the case please I don't want to say something that was not so but if that was the case there would be elements of trafficking in persons there and exploitation, but I want to mention that the DPP herself is taking these cases very seriously, and the charges are apparently have been laid not only on the guy who is the baby father, but also on the parents. Both the mother and the father who allowed that 14 year old to go and live with somebody because a 14 year old is a child and we have to treat that as such and make sure that we hold parents and guardians and perpetrators accountable. I think that is the message today."

Women Making Waves In Maritime Sector

43 Women in the maritime sector were honored today and welcomed into the Belize Chapter of WIMAC, a sisterhood and an alliance formed to provide opportunities and support for females in the maritime sector. Jomarie Lanza attended the ceremony today and here's her story:

Will Bauer Flats, It's About More Than Fishing

Yesterday we showed you how a number of Fishermen, conservationists, and tour guides showed up with flags at the Will Bauer Flats and stood in solidarity against the ongoing development at a location which the foreign developer calls Angelfish Caye.
But this is more than just indigenous resistance - it's a larger fight for a prime fishing location and the seeding ground for an entire marine resource.
The veteran fishers told us why they are putting up a fight, and refuse to let go of their foundational fishing flat.

Making Slow Progress In Implementing Consent Order

And, finally tonight, the Minister of Indigenous Affairs gave us a housekeeping update on the ongoing compliance process for the Communal Land Rights consent order.
There are regular hearings with the Caribbean Court of Justice where both sides try to refine the mechanism for implementation of the consent order.

Balderamos Garcia gave us an update:

Dolores Balderamos Garcia, Minister of Human development
"Yesterday there was what we call a compliance hearing. It is done virtually because it is with the Caribbean Court of Justice judges who sit in Trinidad. And basically the hearing went very well. Apparently there is good process that is being made, and we are hoping to finalize the Maya land policy and then move towards hiring a draftsperson for the legislation. And I believe the judges did say that we are making good progress. Now that does not mean that in the Maya Lands case, the proponents or the people who are claiming can get everything that they want there has to be a balance. There must be a balance. The idea government suggested, proposing that there be a circular area where we don't have to prove that you don't actually live there because your houses are there. Apparently that was a lot of opposition. So we said okay we won't use the circular proposal anymore, but what we are saying is if you wish to have communal land when the legislation is passed, then you have to show that you have lived there for a certain period of time and we are working on the threshold. What the government has proposed is you would have to use an occupation for at least 30 years. It is sort of what we call a prescriptive title. If You are on a piece of land for 30 years and no one moves you then you can claim either like squatters rights or long possession."

We will keep following the case - as we have from 2016.

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