The BDF's job is to patrol the border - and many times they are called in to perform domestic patrols and operations with police. But it seems that the line got blurred for a crew of soldiers in the west on Monday afternoon.
That's when 16 year old Edward Joseph Gonzalez went fishing in the towns river. He says he was minding his own business when he saw two men dash across the banks of the river and shortly after he saw two soldiers.
He kept on fishing for a while longer and when he was leaving, he says the soldiers pounced on him.
Edward Joseph Gonzalez, Victim
"When I was heading home 2 BDF soldiers approached me; one pointing a gun at me and he told me to bring my stuff down which was my fishing rod and my machete, so I put it down and asked him why is he stopping me and he asked me where are the 2 men that were crossing the river, I told him that I don't know. I don't know where they went, so he kept insisting, pushing me with the rifle in my back. I continued walking home and the other BDF officer told me to stop or else he will shoot me. So I stopped; I was afraid because I didn't know what to do, they just pointed a gun at me and asked me where the 2 men were and I didn't know what was going on. They ordered me to get on the ground as u can see in the video. I was frightened."
Jules Vasquez
"Why is it so important that for you that you speak out about this?"
Edward Joseph Gonzalez, Victim
"Because I don't want this to happen to anyone else. Suppose there are like children bathing at the riverside and the BDF are there like doing their patrol and probably drinking. When they approach me I could smell the liquor on their breath. Apparently I think that they were drunk because I could see it in their face. That surprised me and also all the witnesses agreed that they were drunk because you could smell the liquor in their breath."
According to Belize's laws, members of the BDF strictly cannot stop and search Belizean citizens.
Gonzalez recently finished high school and is going to UB when the next school year re-opens.
Leftenant Cornel Ganney Dortch says that they have received the report and he has spoken with the family. He says he is waiting to review the video, and if there is sufficient evidence the soldiers will be charged for wrongdoing. He added that on Thursday Cornel Ortega is going to Benque to speak with family.
