There are two murders to report on tonight, both in rural areas - one in San Antonio Village in the Cayo District, the other in the Bladen area - in the Toledo District.
We start in San Antonio - a murder which happened on Sunday.
Initial reports said that 45 year old Taximan Domiciano Quixchan was killed in a jealous dispute over a female; it turns out that it was far more trivial than even that: it was robbery of a few dollars from a taxi-man.
It happened off the beaten path, near the Mountain Pine Ridge area. Monica Bodden found out more from his family today:
Monica Bodden Reporting
45 year old Domiciano Quixchan - a taxi driver of Bullet Tree Falls in the Cayo District was murdered on Monday afternoon. His body was found by police on a feeder road in San Antonio Village.
The blood stains on his blue Geo Prizm - paints a vivid picture of the struggle he went through - fighting for his life. His body had two stab wounds - to the face and throat.
Earlier Monday afternoon, Quixchan's taxi cab was chartered for a run from Bullet Tree to 7-Miles Village by 21 year old Hernan Manzanero, his wife and their 20 days old baby.
While on their way to 7 miles village, Manzanero told police they were stopped by two black men who boarded the cab. One of the men ordered Quixchan through a feeder road and took out a knife demanding money. His wife Xaria Quixchan - recalled the last moments she had with her husband before he was killed.
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan - Wife of the Deceased
"He left by 7 o'clock in the morning. He told me that he had to run taxi like he normally does like every morning. So, he came back by 10 o'clock, and he ate breakfast with me, and then he left the house. He told me that he was going to come back later. By 11:30, I called him because I sent lunch for my son. I called him and he told me that he was by Bullet Tree. I asked him to come back to get the lunch for my son, and when he came back, I saw two passengers inside the car. The lady is in the front, and the man is in the back. It looked like same guy that we met at the hospital later that night. So he left and by 1 o'clock he didn't call me, and normally he calls me. I got worried, and I started to call him; there was no answer. The phone rang and rang, and then it went to voicemail every time. I began thinking that something was wrong with him."
Quixchan said she called her husband's phone over a hundred times that day. She was told by her brother-in-law later on that evening, that he had been murdered.
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan
"I called back up until 4 o'clock, over a hundred times; he answered the phone. I knew that something was wrong."
Monica Bodden
"Who told you what happened that day? How did you get the news?"
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan
"I got it from my brother-in-law. Somebody called the police and said that they found a taxi for Bullet Tree. They then discovered that the man lying next to the vehicle was Domiciano Quixchan. I called my brother-in-law and told him that Domi didn't answer his phone. I told him that I called the taxi association, and they didn't know where he was. He told me that he tried his phone as well but he didn't get any better luck. I told him that I believed that something really bad had happened to him."
Manzanero who had chartered Quixchan's Taxi cab told police that both he and Quixchan had a struggle with the men. He managed to escape with his wife and baby. But Quixchan never did. His wallet was stolen along with an undisclosed amount of cash.
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan
"I don't understand why. He took the wallet, and he took all the money he had. He didn't have much money because it's like $2 per person, so he doesn't make a lot of money. In the morning he has to buy fuel for the car, and then he has to buy food, so he doesn't have much money. So, I think he must have had $30 - $40 in his wallet."
And there were rumors going around that Quixchan's murder may have been one of passion - an undercover romance gone badly. His wife told us, there is no truth to that and that her husband was a family man with values.
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan
"He works the whole day. I sit by the sofa, and I watch him pass by every 20 minutes. We call each other regularly, so I know it's not true. Every night, he reaches in my house at 8:30 p.m. when he stops working, so I know it's not true."
Monica Bodden
"How long have you guys been married for?"
Voice of: Xaria Quixchan
"15 years. In 15 years, he's never missed one night and didn't sleep in my house, in my bed with me."
He was the father of five and had been with his wife for 15 years.
