The recent saga in the life of Belize’s top “drama” King is, for all intents and purposes, over and done with. This one leaves a very bad taste in the mouths of most Belizeans. The outcome of this case, (against perhaps one of the most dishonorable men to wear the title of honorable), is neither surprising nor unexpected. By a show of hands, who really thought that this case was going anywhere? Sometime in the wee hours of Tuesday February 5th, when most “normal” and decent folks are resting and preparing for a day of work, King was hard at play. Far removed from his constituency of Lake Independence, Mark King, accompanied by an entourage, was seen drinking, gambling and carousing behind a poker table at the Princess Casino in Corozal. Workers report that King was acting boisterous from earlier in the night but obviously knowing who he was; Casino managers were reluctant to address the situation. After all, Mark King is a UDP and who doesn’t know how vindictive this crowd can be? According to the official reports, sometime around 2am of the same date, an associate of King got totally out of control. Casino security personnel attempted to restrain the man, identified as one Diego Witz Jr. Unfortunately, as is often the case, hangers-on of these elected officials consider themselves as sacred and untouchable as their bosses are. A scuffle ensued and Mr. Witz reported became quite violent, refusing to be restrained. It was at this point that Police Constable #1021 Nelson Ramos became involved. Ramos is a full-fledged Police Officer who moonlights as security officer at the casino. Ramos intervened and tried to bring the situation under control but was himself set upon by Witz. Witz reportedly punched Ramos after which PC Ramos placed him under arrest and escorted outside of the casino. Mark King would have none of it and decided to pull rank. He insisted that Witz be released and allowed to re-enter the casino. The Police Officer held his ground and radioed for a transport to the station. A mobile arrived and Witz was placed in the pan of the pickup. King however would have none of it and began to take things into his own hands. He jumped into the pan of the pickup and began assaulting the Police. This is typical Mark King behavior. This is where the report became conflicting. There are those who swear that King pulled a weapon and even fired a few shots. This never made it into the official Police report. What we do know is that there were at least two cameras rolling. In this day and age, everyone carries a cell phone and most cell phones are equipped with video recording capabilities. One of the recordings eventually made it to Channel Seven but by the time it was aired, some images had obviously been blurred and the contents edited. Damage control was already being implemented. Eventually, both King and Witz were escorted to the Police Station and booked on Assault charges. To this point, PC Nelson Ramos was looking like a very brave Police Officer and the Corozal Police Detachment was looking good. Somewhere between arrest date and court date however, something happened. Somebody called somebody who advised somebody for after all, Mark King was a big somebody. Many will remember a case in Belize City a few years ago when a certain Councilor discharged a firearm outside of a popular night club. The Prime Minister himself was caught on tape advising the then mayor on how to handle the case. Wonder if there was a recording of this episode? The outcome of this particular case has stirred serious public emotions; everybody is not happy. Sensing this, the Commissioner of Police has decided to act. After all, his department is looking very bad. From the reports, Officer Ramos decided on his own that he would not pursue the charges. In his capacity as a public officer, that is not within the purview of his authority. The Commissioner has directed that PC Ramos be interdicted and relieved of his duties immediately. On the surface, It would seem like a good move by the Commissioner and it has even been hailed as “gutsy”. One has to wonder however, if it is not a part of the overall collusion that was suggested by one learned individual. Let us look at what an interdiction does. An interdiction suspends an individual from reporting to work, performing any functions in the department and being reduced to collecting only half of his regular salary. At any given time, there are dozens of Police Officers on interdiction. In the past, interdictions have been known to last as long as several years. Many, while awaiting hearing, will go out and acquire a second job, often as security officers. Without a doubt, while Ramos will be on interdiction from the department, he will still be fully employed at the casino. It would be interesting to get the statistics on how many officers ever really lose their jobs following an interdiction. I know quite a few who spend months on half-pay, only to be re-instated with full honors. These individuals then receive the entire amount withheld during their absence from duty. For many then, it becomes little more than a paid vacation with half of their pay being put into a “syndicate” with the accumulated amount collected at the end of their suspension. A sweet deal to say the least! A couple of questions are left unanswered. Why were the video tapes not entered into evidence? Why were the tapes from the casino’s cameras not subpoenaed? Why were the charges not brought back by the DPP? This case is the latest in a long line of travesties and mockeries of our justice system. When this story first broke, I was willing to bet that it would go nowhere. Now, I once again wager that Ramos will be on interdiction for about a year and when everyone had forgotten and moved on to other happenings, PC Ramos will once again appear in full uniform and in full employment. Bet yu!
Posted on: Fri, 28 Jun 2013 13:12:32 +0000
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