Belize: Woman, 60, raped by 33-year-old, court orders accused to prison

Belize: In a tragic incident, a 60-year-old woman was raped inside her home in Belize City on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. The brutal act was carried out by a 33-year-old male who was known to the female. 

According to the information, the senior citizen was awaken by a noise at her front gate at around 4 am in the morning following which she went out of her room to check what is happening and found the man, known to her Samuel. 

She saw him trying to enter her home through a window, forcing her to chase him away and thinking that he had gone. 

After a few minutes, she went out of her house to seek help only to see the accused standing there, following which he dragged the female inside the house and sexually assaulted her. 

The police officials are saying that they responded to a report and saw the victim lying on the floor and took her to the hospital, where it was confirmed by medical officers that she had been raped. In addition to this, the female also had bruises on her face, thighs, and hands. 

On the other hand, the 33-year-old Bernardez resided on Antelope Street and was arrested and charged by police officials soon after the incident with wounding and rape charges. He appeared in court on Monday, where he denied all the charges and said that he should not be remanded because he had to go to work.

Meanwhile, the prosecution was heard arguing that the crime of rape has become prevalent and that the safety of the victim must be taken into consideration. The court agreed and remanded the accused to the Belize Central Prison until September 17, 2024. 

Also, this is not the first time that Bernardez appeared in court; he was also charged with assaulting two police officials back in 2014, as well as for wounding and possession of marijuana.