An American visitor was murdered in the Toledo District over the weekend. 20-year-old Julia Armstrong Minard entered Belize at the Western Border on Thursday. The California resident appears to have been backpacking through Central America with a group of friends. By Sunday, her journey took her to Indian Creek Village, about 30 miles from Punta Gorda town. She was killed on the outskirts of the village last night. Alfonso Noble has been in Indian Creek for most of the day looking for answers. He found out that police already have the man who mthey believe killed the young woman. In the following story, he tells us why.
Alfonso Noble Reporting,
This afternoon 19-year-old Agripo Ical was taken from the Punta Gorda Police Station to Indian Creek Village in Toledo where he retraced the steps he took last night whilst in the company of 20-year-old U.S. national Julia Armstrong Minard. Ical took police to an area in the village off the Southern Highway where villagers found Minard's body after they heard noises coming from the nearby bushes.
Elodio Aragon, Officer in Charge
"We received a phone call at about 11:30 pm from a villager from Indian Creek Village here in P.G. and we responded. The information was that there was a young lady on the side of the road, off the side of the road, on the right hand side. So we proceeded there and there we discovered the body of this American---Julia Armstrong Minard, a U.S. National."
The young woman was found here lying face up. She had on a blouse but did not have any clothing on her lower body other than her underwear. Villagers say when they came upon the scene, they found a man on top of Minard. As the man saw the villagers, he bolted through the bushes away from the scene. Police believe that the man who escaped is Ical.
Elodio Aragon,
"She came into Belize on the 10th of the month, through the Western Border, and she was visiting here. From the information we received, we get to understand that she should have departed the country today, to Guatemala; she was just was just a visitor. We found out that she was in the company of Agripo Ical, who is the resident of Indian Creek Village, and they were drinking that evening and he ended up her home but she did not arrive. She was found about thirty-four feet off the road, on the right hand side. It's a little bushy area, up in the Indian Creek Area the road is very bushy. We are not sure if she went voluntarily or if she was dragged there but we do believe that there was a struggle and in that she lost her life. We have found out that she was drinking in the gentleman's home, the father's home, and likewise at a nearby bar."
Alfonso Noble,
So she was drinking heavily on that night?
Elodio Aragon,
"I'm not sure to what extent she was drinking but I can say that we do believe that she was drinking somewhat."
And it is in that state that police believe that the assailant tried to take advantage of her, making sexual advances which she resisted.
Elodio Aragon,
"We believe that this incident had to do with Ical trying to make sexual advances which the girl denied and as a result a struggle where we believe during that struggle is when she lost her life. We are investigating, we are taking statements from all persons that were out there, who saw the victim alive, who saw them together, and we are putting a case together. More than likely we'll be charging him for murder."
And while police were quick to detain Ical, Aragon says that the incident was isolated and it's a crime they have spared no effort or manpower to solve.
Elodio Aragon,
"These incidents, as unfortunate as they are, the Punta Gorda has spared no effort and time to ensure that we have brought this person to justice and the investigation is still underway. Our police officers have been out from when we first received the call and they are still out there on the field looking for whatever clues, evidence, and taking statements so we can build a good case."
And as they have done so police are now left to return Minard's belongings to her family. This afternoon, they brought in her backpack that she was carrying before she was killed.
This evening, Ical was charged for murder, he is expected to be arraigned tomorrow. The post mortem will not be performed until Wednesday when her family arrives from California. At this point, only a post mortem can confirm whether she had been raped. Police say that, outwardly, the only signs of violence are strangulation marks around her neck.
She is believed to have been traveling in a group of friends who were based in the Sittee River area in the Stann Creek District. She left Sittee yesterday morning arrived in Indian Creek yesterday afternoon while, it is believed, her friends went to the islands.
The investigations are being monitored very closely by headquarters in Belmopan because of the far reaching ramifications it could have for the tourist industry. In tomorrow night's newscast, we'll have more on that investigation and on damage control measures being taken by tourism authorities.
