Marcus & Julian Garcia Acquitted of Passport Theft

It made headlines in October of 2006 when Marcus Garcia and Julian Garcia were charged with theft and handling stolen goods after 100 passports were stolen from the Immigration Department vault in Belmopan. They were arrested after police recovered a bag with 95 of the stolen passports at a home on Far West Street in San Ignacio Town.

The case went to trial last week. The police prosecutor called 9 witnesses after which defense attorney Simeon Sampson submitted they had no case to answer because the only evidence against them were the caution statements which were improperly obtained. The Presiding Magistrate agreed and the case against Marcus and Julian Garcia was thrown out.