SAN PEDRO, Ambergris Caye, Belize District, Wed. July 8, 2020– Three San Pedro fishermen have been remanded until October 7 on charges of attempted kidnapping, wounding and burglary. The three fishermen — Ruben Avalos Martinez, 29; Mark Hernandez, 27, and David Lopez, 18, of the San Mateo sub-division—were taken to the San Pedro Magistrate’s Court yesterday, where they were arraigned.

Virjilio Gimez Alverta, 34, a Honduran laborer who resides in the San Mateo area of the island, told police that at about 11:00 p.m. while he was at home, three men, whom he knows, went to his house. One had a machete, while the other two men each had a knife. The men reportedly attacked Alverta.

Alverta told police that he recognized Martinez, who beat him in the side of his head with a stick, while Hernandez tried to stab him in the abdomen. Alverta struggled with them and they ended up dragging him out of his house, towards a boat that was anchored in the nearby lagoon.

Alverta, however, struggled with them and was able to escape. He ran into a nearby restaurant, where he called police for help.

When Alverta, his wife and police later went to his home, they found that his house had been burglarized and his belongings stolen, including two flat-screen television sets and a DVD player.

Alverta then went to the police station, where he made a report. He was seen at the station with a swollen cheek, scratches and scrapes on both legs, abrasions on his back and a cut wound on the left arm.

He was taken to the San Pedro Polyclinic, where he was treated and later released.

Police and the San Pedro branch of the Coast Guard began an immediate investigation, and a black skiff was found in the lagoon. The boat has been impounded by the Coast Guard, who conducted an investigation that led to the three men.

Police said that a further investigation led to the recovery of the stolen items, which were found in the bushes on the side of the lagoon.

The motive for the attempted kidnapping has not yet been established, said police.