Concepcion is a sleepy village about six miles away from Corozal Town. It has a small population of about 700 persons and, outside of the occasional drunken brawl and minor theft, the village hardly ever sees any major crime.
But tonight, the tight-knit community is reeling after the sensational, early morning abduction of a 29-year old mother of six by five gunmen.
Fortunately, though, tonight the story is not about a missing mother, it's about how her village rallied to rescue her.
Jim McFadzean and camera-man Victor Noble have been north all day putting the pieces together - and found that the abduction has left police asking: was it just a random kidnapping for money, or was this the result of someone wanting to settle an old beef?
Here's the report:
Jim McFadzean Reporting
Jim McFadzean
"The bizarre incident happened as 29 year-old Marleni stepped out of her house here, at around 4:30 this morning. She walked into her kitchen where she normally goes in the mornings to prepare breakfast for her husband, who's a field captain that works for Fruta Bomba, the pappaya company. It is at that time in the morning when it's very dark around here that the 5 captors - allegedly 5 men - 3 of them grabbed her from behind. One of them put their hand on her mouth to muffle her sounds, and that is when they dragged her along here, and all of them took Marleni into the bushes right into the cane fields, and that is where they ended up waiting for a ransom that they were expecting to be delivered - $1,000 by her husband."
Marleni Cawich - Woman Abducted by 5 Armed Men
"They dragged me into the cane field where I was placed sitting down, and I was told that I'd have to wait for my husband because they left a letter telling him that he needs to bring $1,000 if he wants to see me alive again. They asked me for a cellular phone or contact number to get in touch with him. They were pushing me along telling me that if my husband didn't bring the money, they would come after my children."
The early morning abduction has rattled the nerves of Concepcion villagers, a village that's smack in the middle of sugar cane country. It forms part of a triangle of villages that include San Pedro and San Joaquin, and any incident of abduction can carry serious consequences, since escape across the un-regulated Mexican side of the Ramonal and Allende villages is less than one hour away. Police say they responded as soon as they got word of the abduction.
ASP James Moreira - 2nd Officer In Comand, Corozal Police
"Well, we first got the report at about shortly - about 5, or after 5, going to 6. A team of police officers went to Concepcion in order to confirm the report. When that was done, they returned back, but then they informed me that, yes, such a thing might have happened. And as a result of that, we then launched a team in order to proceed to the area."
Jim McFadzean
"Could you first tell us, what did your initial team establish? Was this just a random abduction? Or was this pre-planned?"
ASP James Moreira
"I wouldn't say that it's a pre-plan. It's just at random."
Jim McFadzean
"Even though a letter from the captor was found?"
ASP James Moreira
"Yes, because what happened is that captors went in, held on to the person, they just left their note, and then disappeared."
Jim McFadzean
"So you believe that the people responsible for kidnapping Mrs. Cawich wrote that ransom note before they left?"
ASP James Moreira
"I would say that they would have done it before, and when they reached the area, they just left it there."
And while the police tried sorting out the contents of the ransom letter and worked at developing a plan of action, Cawich was being prodded by her captors to supply them with her husband's cellular phone.
Jim McFadzean
"Did they say if they knew your husband?"
Marleni Cawich
"No."
Jim McFadzean
"Did they speak as if they were Belizeans?"
Marleni Cawich
"Yes, the only one speaking to me did. The rest said nothing."
Jim McFadzean
"Did you recognize any of the men?"
Marleni Cawich
"It was very dark; I knew that there were 5 of them. I knew that one had dark skin, and he was the only one talking to me."
And so while Cawich and her kidnappers waited for a response to the ransom, and the police kept working on executing a rescue plan, the clock kept ticking, and so, by 11 a.m. when villagers could see no police action in place, they decided to execute a plan of their own.
Pedro Mendez Sr.
"Around 11, I told everyone, 'Look, we're not going to wait for the police.' So while my son was at the police station reporting the incident, we gathered as much people as we could, split into 2 groups, and went looking. I was the first to see her sitting there. She motioned where the kidnappers were, and I fired shots, which was returned. Then, during that exchange, she ran to me and the kidnappers fled."
ASP James Moreira
"Around 10 minutes to 12 - somewhere around that I would say - I was given a call informing me that the villagers had already found the lady, Mrs. Cawich. As a matter of fact, I sent out surveillance to survey the area, so that we can enter from the back, the front, and the side. While we were doing that, it seemed that the villagers got impatient. So they took it on their own, and they went into the area. It was a pity that we didn't go in the same time, because there wouldn't have been a little cross fire, because we would have known that they were in there."
Jim McFadzean
"So you're saying that what the villagers did, while it was brave, it could have jeopardized..."
ASP James Moreira
"Jeopardize themselves and ourselves."
Jim McFadzean
"It just might be the sign of the times, communities, such as this one in Concepcion, that say that they are no longer waiting for the police. They are going to respond when it's in their best interests, the interests of their families, and their communities."
Cawich was immediately taken to the Corozal Community Hospital where she was given medical attention for lacerations to her knees and elbow.
Police say they have one person detained for questioning, but are still searching for the men suspected in the abduction.
Cawich's common-law husband Pedro Mendez, Jr. declined an on-camera interview, and denied any connections to or knowledge of the alleged abductors.
Police say they have one person detained for questioning, but are still searching for the men suspected in the abduction.
A reliable source who has seen the ransom letter, told Seven News that reference was made to the settling of an old debt. Police won't confirm the contents of the letter.
