He was charged for vehicle theft in 2012, and 11 years later, a suspended police officer has been found guilty. Yesterday a jury found Constable Virgil Perez guilty of theft of a $55,000 dollar Toyota Hilux belonging to Brucewell Michael Reid.
It was stolen from Belize Diesel Equipment Ltd., located at Mile 1 on the Phillip Goldson Highway on February 26, 2012. The crown argued that while no one saw Perez stealing the vehicle, he was found with the stolen Hilux shortly after the incident. Perez who gave a sworn testimony under oath said in his defense that he had no knowledge that the vehicle was stolen and that he was just driving it. Notably, when police stopped and searched the vehicle they found that one of the rear windows had been broken and the shattered glass was seen on the floor inside the cab.
And even though it all happened 11 years ago, a jury of 9, four women and 5 men deliberated for four hours and 21 minutes before returning with a unanimous verdict of guilty for theft.
The DPP's office was represented by Crown Counsel Robert Lord and Justice Sandcroft who heard the case has reserved sentencing for March 31, 2023. Perez was remanded at the Belize Central Prison until sentencing.
