Ralph Fonseca Jr., he was a 34 years old when he died in a tragic road accident in September. But he's come back into the news because the details of his will - now a document probate in the courts - have become known. And because he left all his assets to his father - an elected official - his private will has become the subject of a fair amount of public speculation. It's been posted at FreeBelize.org and we had a look at it.
Jules Vasquez Reporting,
He was known as a political officer for his father, Ralph Senior and his will shows that Junior left everything for his father, principally his local holdings which property and cash combined are valued at $1.123 million. It's a fair amount for a 34 year old who was known only as a political officer.
A listing of his assets show multiple properties, shareholding in companies, and local and foreign bank accounts in Florida, Canada, and Panama. The local accounts were held at the First Caribbean Bank, $815 in one, $78,000 in another. And 167 shares in a company called Resource Investment Limited - valued at $16,700. That's the company that sold the land for Los Lagos to government - and during the DFC hearings, Fonseca Sr. bristled at the suggestion
of his involvement.
[March 9th, 2007]
Merlene Bailey Martinez,
"But I need to ask you so that you can go on record to clarify this. Did you in anyway benefit financially from the purchase of lands in Los Lagos?"
Hon. Ralph Fonseca,
"No, Madam Commissioner."
Merlene Bailey-Martinez,
"Thank You."
Hon. Ralph Fonseca,
"May I just add Madam Commissioner that I have owned hundreds of companies, that is the nature of my business when I'm not in government. They are shell companies and they are sold off and they do many things afterwards. But i have answered your question."
Merlene Bailey-Martinez,
"I just needed to ask it because the company is still within your family so I just needed to make sure that I clarified that with you."
Hon. Ralph Fonseca,
"The company is within my family?"
Merlene Bailey-Martinez,
"Yes, the company Resource Investment Limited is still owned by members of your family."
Hon. Ralph Fonseca,
"Owned by members?"
Merlene Bailey-Martinez,
"Up until the time when we are looking at the DFC."
Hon. Ralph Fonseca,
"I sense that you are trying to impute improper motives here without any reason whatsoever. Now I have been sitting here and listening to judgmental questions but I will not tolerate any kind of thing like that being directed to my family. I have no idea which one of my family you are referring to. The last statement that you made and, 'my family still owns that company,' which I am pretty sure is not so. I wouldn't doubt that maybe one of my family has some shares in that company but I know that they do not own it."
And he was accurate: 167 is some of the shares - not ownership - and now by virtue of this will, those shares have been passed unto Fonseca. He also inherits 12 properties across Belize valuing from $50,000 to $250,000 for a combined value of over $1 million.
And while those are the local holdings, the foreign assets are also notable. These show 13 foreign accounts in the Bank of America in Miami, the Bank of Tampa, Canada Trust in Toronto and Florida Investment Advisers - described on their website as a full service brokerage firm that specialized in wealth management. The amounts in those accounts are not listed. There's also a pair of properties in Tampa that were owned by Fonseca Jr.
According to the forensic audit of the DFC, the three original owners of Resorts Investment Limited were Javier Berbey Garcia, Eugene Zabaneh and Henry Brodhurst, who is a Fonseca relative.
