His mother accuses prison officials of coverup
HATTIEVILLE, Belize District, Tues. Dec. 5, 2017–A prisoner on remand at the Kolbe-managed Belize Central Prison was sodomized on two separate occasions and prison officials apparently decided they would attempt to cover up the incident when family members of the victim tried to visit him on Monday.
Police, however, confirmed that the incident occurred, and a report had been made to them by the victim.
The mother of the 21-year-old man, who has been on remand since November for an allegation of a sexual nature, told Amandala today that she and her son’s father were turned away from the prison on Monday, and denied access to visit their son, without any proper explanation.
The mother said that she received information from another family member who is serving time at the facility that her son had been the victim of a brutal sexual assault, and that was perhaps the reason that prison officials denied them access to him.
Amandala attempted to speak with the Chief Executive Officer of the prison, but we were told that he is presently out of the country.
We did manage, however, to speak to a senior member of the prison staff who denied any knowledge of the incident, or even that the incident occurred.
“I can’t give you information about something I don’t know anything about,” the officer said emphatically today.
According to the police, on Wednesday, November 29, information was received from the Belize Central Prison of an alleged sexual assault upon an inmate by another inmate; as a result, Hattieville CIB and DVU (Domestic Violence Unit) personnel made their way to the Belize Central Prison.
At the prison, the police officers met with the alleged victim, who told them that on Friday, November 24, around 1:00 a.m., his cellmate choked him from behind and forcibly had sexual intercourse with him. He said that he passed out and when he awoke, he had pain in his anus and lower abdomen. When he checked himself, he had what appeared to be semen around his anus.
The prisoner told police that he was again sexually assaulted by the same cellmate on Wednesday, November 29, but unlike the first time, on Friday, November 24, when he passed out, this second assault resulted in him and his attacker getting into a fight after the attacker had carried out the assault.
The victim was seen by the prison medical doctor and his injury was classified as wounding. It is not clear if or when charges will be brought against his attacker.