A brazen fatal robbery has shaken a local water delivery company in Belize’s Orange Walk District, after two on-duty drivers were ambushed in broad daylight, leaving one dead and another hospitalized. The violent attack unfolded around 4:30 p.m. Monday along Chan Pine Ridge Road, according to official police reports, and has left company leadership struggling to make sense of the senseless violence.
The two victims, identified as Roberto Villafranco and Felipe Vasquez, were carrying out their regular delivery routes when assailants attacked them. Villafranco, 48, suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was pronounced dead at the scene of the attack. Vasquez, who was shot in the chest, managed to flee the ambush to a nearby gas station to call for emergency help, and he remains in medical care as of the latest update.
Eliezer Escalante, head of the Zeta delivery company, told reporters he is still reeling from the incident, which marks the first violent attack on any of the firm’s employees in its operating history. The entire company workforce has been left shaken by the unexpected tragedy, he added. In a puzzling observation that has raised questions about the attackers’ motives, Escalante noted that the company’s delivery drivers carry almost no cash on their routes, making them an illogical target for a robbery.
Escalante explained that the business delivers five-gallon water containers at a rate of just $3 per unit, and even on a full day of routes, drivers rarely carry more than enough cash from 60 completed deliveries – a sum that totals less than $200 overall. “These guys don’t carry any significant amount of money on them, so I can’t understand why anyone would target them for a deadly robbery,” Escalante said.
As of the latest update on April 29, 2026, law enforcement officials have not made any arrests in connection with the attack, and active investigations are ongoing to identify and apprehend the perpetrators. Local media outlets will air an extended report on the incident at 6 p.m. local time for audiences seeking further updates.