For the past four nights - we've been reporting on the violent police raid at the Menjivar home on the outskirts of Belmopan.
The first account was from the head of the Gang Suppression Unit and then Tuesday and Wednesday you heard from the family - who showed us their bullet scarred home - and narrated what they took to be a terror-filled home invasion.
Today the GSU went on its own media offensive, sharing with the media a three minute video recording of when they entered the home and took gunfire.
Jules Vasquez Reporting
Here's what it looked like as captured by the Gang Suppression Unit's camera-man who is also a police officer: The tape shows when the GSU first entered the yard and went to the door - the burglar bar was not locked and the officer said:
Police Officer
"Police open the door"
Police Officer
"Police open the door!"
From there the officer started to ram it open - alternately demanding that the door be opened
And that's when the gunfire started - and the camera man ran for cover - police say those first shots came from inside and the GSU responded.
That's where the dog was shot and that's where they shouted again.
But the door was not opened and standoff continued for a minute more when the police shouted again:
Police Officer
"Police open the door"
That's when the camera operator went for tear gas and stopped taping. At that point - 3:24 into the ordeal - the door had not been breached.
ASP Marco Vidal
"When they went to get the tear gas the individual or individuals from the inside continue to fire at the police. Of course they could not have waited for the tear gas because they were being upon. The decision was then taken to breach the house."
GOING over it with the media today ASP VIDAL says the videotape evidence establishes key elements about their approach and who fired first.
ASP Marco Vidal
"It clearly establishes that the situation was never provoked by the police. The occupants of the house should have complied with the announcement made by the officers that they were the police."
Vidal pointed first to the lights on the porch, proving that the GSU approached with the lights on outside the door - and did not shoot out those lights, that they identified themselves as police, did not have on masks, and did not fire first
ASP Marco Vidal
"Shots were fired from inside the building and that the reason why the officers ran for cover. There was no communication from inside even though we have identified our self as police officers. The person never communicated with the officers outside except that he fired at the police. He didn't at any time engage the officers to ask them who they were and ask them their name and that kind of thing. He never did that instead as you can observe at the beginning when there was banging on the door, he did not ask who it was at no time. The officers inform and announce that they were police officers and there were no response and there was shuffling inside and a decision was made to breach the door. At that point they were able to observe and hear movements and shortly after shots were fired at the officers. He was firing against police officers and obviously he was not just firing to scare them off, he was firing to actually hit the officers. The police officers were never engage to hit their target, it could have been done. The level of fire power and these officers are train to hit their target. It was not the case, he was eventually subdued It could have been far worst given that the officers were attack and they were justify in responding."
Jules Vasquez
"Was he firing from all different rooms in the house?"
ASP Marco Vidal
"You said he, we are not sure if it is one person firing of if all the three adults inside of the house at some point were firing. But the gunshots were coming from different positions from inside the house to the officers."
After viewing the tape this evening, Attorney for the Menjivar's, Arthur Saldivar told us that the video does not dispel the perception that exists and does not answer the questions that are out there as to the procedure that the police employed.
He said that his initial impression is that the video starts after two dogs were killed - and only records one dog being killed. He says the police brought no lights and that the officer who first approached the door did not speak loud enough to draw the attention of those sleeping in the house.
