And tuning now to other news...
Yesterday evening, a mother in Cayo received the worst news any parent could get. Her 7-year-old daughter drowned while swimming in the river in Santa Familia.
According to the mother, Marina Vidal, she left her daughter, Rebecca Thompson, with the child's godmother, a retired Canadian named Mary.
Vidal said Mary insisted on watching the child while she and her husband took a trip to the Vital Statistics office here in Belize City. The godmother had the little girl from Sunday and despite instructions from the Vidal not to take Rebecca swimming, she did anyway. Vidal explained today when she got the call and found her daughter dead by the riverside.
Vidal said it was a teenage boy who pulled Rebecca out of the river and attempted CPR, to no avail. She is not completely convinced that Mary took the child to the shallow part of the river, since she said the body was found near the deeper end, over a hill.
Mary also gave an interview today where she explained her side of the story, saying that Rebecca went under the water while chasing after a toy, and that the godmother was not strong enough to go after her.
Rebecca had been attending Sacred Heart Primary School. Vidal met Mary around the start of the pandemic, and Mary had helped the family with school fees.
