This morning, acting on “information received,” police visited the bushes on the left side of Mile 3, Western Highway (when going west), and found a decomposed body later identified as that of Honduran taxi operator Antonio Romero Orellana, 45, who had been missing since last week Wednesday.
A post-mortem was performed at the scene by Dr. Mario Estradabran, who certified the cause of death as head trauma due to a gunshot wound to the back of the head. The bullet exited through the temple. The body was discovered clad in a ¾ jeans pants, a green, yellow and red-striped polo shirt, and was barefooted.
Orellana’s common-law wife, Rosemarie Godoy, told Amandala on Tuesday evening that her husband’s cousin had told them that Orellana, who runs what is commonly known as a “dollar taxi” in the Lake Independence area of Belize City, had failed to come home on January 28 and has not been seen since.
The taxi Orellana rented, a light blue Dodge Caravan with red lining, was recovered in the vicinity of Banak Street, near Partridge Street.
Orellana is survived by his daughter and son, Samara and Antonio (“Tonito”), their mother, Ms. Godoy, and other relatives and friends.
Family friend Norman Lainfiesta, who drove some of Orellana’s family members to the scene to identify the body, told Amandala that Orellana was a cool, friendly, easygoing man with no known enemies and no reason why anyone would want to kill him. Family members at the scene would not comment and his wife could not be reached.
Following the post-mortem, the body was buried at Lord’s Ridge Cemetery. Police have no suspects yet.