Belize - Francesca Matus, 52, & Drew De Voursney, 36, murdered, Corozal, 25 Apr 2017

[DexterMorgan]

There are a few things that people may not be aware of. First of all, there is a thriving middle class in Belize. There are many educated and professional Belizeans. It's not all poverty and gangs. Belize City is a relatively typical Central American city with many challenges. It's been infected with a gang problem, which originated when Belizean criminals were sent back to Belize and brought the Bloods and Crips with them combined with easy(ish) money from the drug trade. The USA war on drugs is considered by many in Belize to have been the triggering point for change for the worse in Belize. Once they sent in their planes to poison the fields of weed and allowed it (some would say encouraged) to become part of the cocaine (and human) trafficking route through Central America things started going downhill.

Crime has definitely gotten worse and that's tragic, mainly for Belizeans, who are the most frequent victims of crime. Belizean people are saddened deeply about this murder. Not only because they really do care, but because it paints such a warped picture of Belize. I had some friends here from the USA last week. They loved it. They can't wait to come back.

I suppose that the sort of travelers who will read a tragic story about a murder 'in paradise' and use it as a reason not to travel there are not the sort of travelers who would like Belize much anyway. The stories of mass shootings in the USA, which are daily, scare me too.

Do you guys have sufficient street lights at night?

Because gangs are 1 thing.

But gangs while the streetz and roads are blackened out at night is another. Jmo

 

[Gardenista]

RSBM
More: http://www.myajc.com/news/breaking-...nta-marine-girlfriend/4ZXywxuaoyU5TKq1uqzx6I/

I'm curious about that call

 

[charminglane]

I travelled to Belize on Ambergris Caye last November.
I dream of it every single day.
Even with this tragedy, I cannot wait to go back. I have even considered buying property there after one trip.
What wonderful people make up that paradise.

 

[Satchie]

Thinking about the kind of evidence that would be necessary to resolve this case: there's unlikely to be a murder weapon or anything taken from the victims that night, or DNA left with the victims. That leaves fingerprints on the duct tape or the car, DNA on the car if it could be clearly connected with the crime, the FBI would have to pay for the DNA testing in the US. The forensics evidence would have to match a suspect. It may come down to old-fashioned policing, where a confession from someone involved is the best hope.

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[kbissing]

Thinking about the kind of evidence that would be necessary to resolve this case: there's unlikely to be a murder weapon or anything taken from the victims that night, or DNA left with the victims. That leaves fingerprints on the duct tape or the car, DNA on the car if it could be clearly connected with the crime, the FBI would have to pay for the DNA testing in the US. The forensics evidence would have to match a suspect. It may come down to old-fashioned policing, where a confession from someone involved is the best hope.

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Aren't their phones still missing?


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[otto]

Aren't their phones still missing?


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Phones, car keys, car registration, car battery ... maybe other things that were in the car

 

[andreww]

Thinking about the kind of evidence that would be necessary to resolve this case: there's unlikely to be a murder weapon or anything taken from the victims that night, or DNA left with the victims. That leaves fingerprints on the duct tape or the car, DNA on the car if it could be clearly connected with the crime, the FBI would have to pay for the DNA testing in the US. The forensics evidence would have to match a suspect. It may come down to old-fashioned policing, where a confession from someone involved is the best hope.

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I think phone activity is going to be critical in this case. Possibly finger prints, foot prints and maybe even DNA evidence (Now that FBI is involved). I think the threat may be their best clue thus far. Obviously somebody else knew about it, so they would also know who made it. And as nobody else has been detained, one can only assume that it was JD that made the threats at this point.

 

[andreww]

And another thing, there must have been another vehicle involved. Car batteries are heavy, and even someone in decent shape could only carry one for several hundred yards at best. So if the perp acted alone, he'd have to leave his vehicle close to where Francesca's car was found, then he'd have to get to the bar to carry out the abduction. Makes more sense to me that this crime was carried out by more than one person.

 

[PaxBelize]

Do you guys have sufficient street lights at night?

Because gangs are 1 thing.

But gangs while the streetz and roads are blackened out at night is another. Jmo

Depends where you are. In towns and villages yes, for the most part. But there isn't much gang activity of that nature in Corozal, so it wouldn't be relevant. Not to mention that gangs generally murder their own. Gangs and street lights would have little or no relevance to this case.

 

[PaxBelize]

Thinking about the kind of evidence that would be necessary to resolve this case: there's unlikely to be a murder weapon or anything taken from the victims that night, or DNA left with the victims. That leaves fingerprints on the duct tape or the car, DNA on the car if it could be clearly connected with the crime, the FBI would have to pay for the DNA testing in the US. The forensics evidence would have to match a suspect. It may come down to old-fashioned policing, where a confession from someone involved is the best hope.

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There is unlikely to have been DNA collected. Our police do not have the know how or the technology. There are no forensics here. Confessions or witnesses tend to be the only basis for prosecutions and most of those fail at court.

 

[Dushi]

There could be a lot of evidence in the truck IMHO

 

[Wondergirl]

It could not have been easy to carve a path through a sugar cane field in the dark and dump two people, one of whom was a sturdy 6'6'' man, imo, speculation.rbbm
http://www.ajc.com/news/murder-belize-canadian-held-person-interest/ViSImVAyEkCiTSRJj71fxN/

http://www.ajc.com/news/murder-beliz...kCiTSRJj71fxN/

Demetrio Yam, left, shows Roger Kene, where he found the bodies of Drew DeVoursney and Francesca Matus Monday morning in his sugar cane field in northern Belize. “The path was not here. When they brought the bodies, they left this trail,” he said, speaking in Spanish through an interpreter. “I don’t really know exactly what happened.” JEREMY REDMON/jredmon@ajc.com

There you go.

Thank-you for this, Dotr.

There *should* be forensics all over that field, if the killer(s) made that indentation.

Do any of the locals have an approximate address for any of the pertinent locations in this case? I really would like to gather more information from the maps.

Thanks,
WG

 

[Wondergirl]

Anyone get screeners of JD's FB? It's been taken down.

 

[Wondergirl]

Belize’s real estate boom for expats emerged as a side product of tourism. North American and European visitors increasingly become enthralled by the easy Belizean lifestyle against the backdrop of pristine beaches, coral islands on azure seas and vivid rainforests with breathtaking views. This boom has led to acquisition and exchange of a commodity that Belizeans took for granted, and has led to an appreciation in prices that are now beyond the reach of the average local citizen. The market, now largely void of local participation, has evolved among foreign interests to where values are ascertained not by North American standards of valuation, but by impulse and emotion. This market is wrought with imperfect titles, uncertain shareholdings, and boundaries based on unclear paperwork and surveys. This Gold Rush ease of acquisition of Belizean property has brought all types to Belize, and the culture clash that has resulted, fueled by intolerance by both locals and foreigners, seems to be leading to incidents of violence among their own and to a lesser extent, between expats and locals.

https://insideview.blog/2017/05/07/heart-of-darkness/

 

[PaxBelize]

There you go.

Thank-you for this, Dotr.

There *should* be forensics all over that field, if the killer(s) made that indentation.

Do any of the locals have an approximate address for any of the pertinent locations in this case? I really would like to gather more information from the maps.

Thanks,
WG

Forensics are non existent here. Addresses pretty much the same. It's only recently we got street names in our area and most addresses are given as 'You know Mr. Lopez's son's house, the one with the big fence? Well I'm down there past the big tree that Samuel fell out of last year.'

 

[Wondergirl]

Drew's mother said he went to Belize for Gold Mining, when he bought the 5 acre property in Belize 4 years ago.

BBM Below: I would like to know if Drew did take his friend's advice that night, and perhaps go to the hospital/clinic or stop at a store for bandages etc. to repair the wound that he had on his head that night from diving?

Also - WHO was Francesca talking to outside on the cell phone that night at Scotty's?

Gold mining in Belize followed.
“He couldn’t quite land,” his mother said. “He just couldn’t land.”
Four years ago, Drew bought five acres in Belize with a friend, seeing it as a possible site for a scuba diving business. He started dating Francesca a few months ago and they seemed happy.

Drew’s business plans in Belize weren’t working out as he had envisioned, his mother said, so he was planning to return to Georgia and attend a trade school with his brother, David, in Conyers, where they would learn how to operate heavy equipment.

Nothing seemed out of place the last time BB saw his friends at Scotty’s Bar and Grill in Corozal. It would turn out to be the night they disappeared.A former Delta Air Lines worker who lived in Peachtree City, Bill said he sat in his regular spot atop a stool at the corner of the bar that evening, facing the blue-green Caribbean Sea. Drew sat across from him. Bill remembers him as friendly and always laughing. The two met playing volleyball at a local park. Drew’s height gave him a major advantage. And he used it to spike the ball.
Bill remembers urging his friend that evening to take care of a wound on his head so it wouldn’t get infected. Drew got scraped up diving into the sea after a volleyball. His head was oozing.

Francesca stepped out of the bar at one point that evening and sat on the sea wall, talking on her cell phone. That struck Bill as odd but not unusual because guests routinely headed out there to escape the noise from the bar. Bill said he didn’t see anyone else with Francesca and Drew that evening.

 

[Wondergirl]

Another picture I haven't seen here yet:

http://www.myajc.com/news/breaking-...nta-marine-girlfriend/4ZXywxuaoyU5TKq1uqzx6I/

 

[Wondergirl]

Forensics are non existent here. Addresses pretty much the same. It's only recently we got street names in our area and most addresses are given as 'You know Mr. Lopez's son's house, the one with the big fence? Well I'm down there past the big tree that Samuel fell out of last year.'

Lol, okay, if you go to the Belize Maps online, or the one I posted here a few days ago, can you tell me if my X's are correct - or how do they need to be adjusted to mark the recovery locations, and where did Drew and his friend own the 5 acres?

https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Co...a18deda0bff5e3!8m2!3d18.1349238!4d-88.2461183

 

[PaxBelize]

Lol, okay, if you go to the Belize Maps online, or the one I posted here a few days ago, can you tell me if my X's are correct - or how do they need to be adjusted to mark the recovery locations, and where did Drew and his friend own the 5 acres?

https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Co...a18deda0bff5e3!8m2!3d18.1349238!4d-88.2461183

I have no idea I'm afraid. I'd never heard of either of them until their tragic deaths and the location of recovery will only really be known to the police and those directly involved. I only have one acquaintance who knew Francesca. I don't know anyone who knew Drew. Not all expats in Belize socialize with each other. Many move here to become part of the Belize community. I certainly wouldn't depend on anything you read in the press either. It's notoriously inaccurate. There are only reporters in Belize, no journalists.

 

[Satchie]

There is unlikely to have been DNA collected. Our police do not have the know how or the technology. There are no forensics here. Confessions or witnesses tend to be the only basis for prosecutions and most of those fail at court.

True. I was mentioning the DNA only because the FBI would probably be looking at it.

So many of the tricky murder cases I've followed on this forum have been successfully prosecuted from exhaustive collection and analysis of DNA, fingerprints, surveillance cameras and cell phone location data. The evidence around motive, such as witness statements and text messages just provide the framework that help the jury understand the forensic 'proof'.

I have no idea how much it cost to successfully prosecute murder cases in Canada such as the Liknes family or Tim Bosma, likely millions per case. Whatever taxes a small, mostly poor country like Belize collects quite righly goes to roads, public health, basic education, general security, and creating a tourist infrastructure to bring in jobs. It would be foolhardy for them to build a state of the art forensics lab when they don't have enough police officers in the high crime areas, and don't pay them very well.



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