20-year-old alleged killer Fausto Teck was arraigned in the San Ignacio Magistrates Court for murder earlier today. As has been widely reported, Teck is accused of fatally stabbing 19-year-old Chris Rodriguez at the Norman Broaster Stadium on Tuesday evening. The teenager died in the early hours of Wednesday morning and video footage captured the incident, starting from a punch thrown by Rodriguez and ending with a deadly chase.
But despite the video, Teck was still charged for murder though yesterday the ComPol said he was trying to claim self defence.
Rodriguez's family lined up outside the courthouse today, angry and hurt, shouting obscenities as Teck was taken from the station into the courtroom. And Rodriguez's father expressed his concern at not being allowed in to view the proceeding - he spoke to The Pandy Show.
Manuel Rodriguez, Father of Deceased
"First of all I don't know why they didn't allow me as the father being up there, they could have search me to make sure I didn't have a weapon, I don't even have intentions of killing this boy or whatever, I just want to make sure they do their part, I just want to see that guy in his eyes, to make him look me in the eye, to make him know that I'm Chris' dad. They shouldn't deny me from being up there, I just hope justice come out of this. They haven't done nothing about Miriam Mai and Daisy Miralda from 2016 to now, nothing has gotten done as yet. I just hope they do their job and make this guy pay for the murder of my son."
"I just would want to tell him he chance my son. If you were a man, you could have fought him hand to hand, that's how a man fights, using weapons is a coward. I look at him as a coward."
"From he get murdered, I didn't sleep the entire night, the entire day, I manage to get a little sleep last night, I'm still crying over my son because I know he was so humble and so innocent. I'm the type of dad if my son is doing wrong and getting into problem, I would correct them, I wouldn't just leave it just like that. if he was the kind of guy giving problem, I would feel it yes, but I wouldn't speak much about it. But he never fight in his life. What happened here is the first time he even got into a fight and the reason I believe he react is because that guy had to tell him something."
"Probably 45 minutes before he passed away, I was with him, and he explained to me that from he reached there, the guy was tantalising him, chasing him out, not only him, his cousin, the girls that were there, he was chasing them away and telling them he will make sure he doesn't come back again. But he had to tell my son something for my son to react."
"I'm praying to God that they do justice for my son and this guy get the amount of years that he need for murder, that's murder. I heard they want to give him a lesser charge of manslaughter, how the hell that could be manslaughter or self defence?"
Teck was remanded to the Belize Central Prison until August 3rd.
