On the morning of May 6, 2026, a brazen, premeditated attack shattered the quiet of San Ignacio, a town in Belize’s Cayo District, leaving two veteran special constables dead and sending shockwaves through the close-knit local community. Law enforcement officials have confirmed that officers Manuel Smith and Fidencia Osgaya were ambushed and killed in an execution-style killing shortly after sunrise, as they headed home following an overnight 12-hour shift patrolling the San Ignacio and Santa Elena Market.
According to Kenroy White, the pair’s direct supervisor who returned to work from vacation just that day, the officers were let off their shift a few minutes earlier than usual to accommodate a pre-planned town board retreat and the San Ignacio-Santa Elena municipal council’s annual sports day, an event employees had been anticipating for weeks. White explained that unlike their usual routine – which ended with casual coffee, lighthearted jokes, and check-ins with local vendors before heading home – the pair rushed straight to their vehicle to leave, with Osgaya only pausing briefly to hand over her shift key before departing.
Just a few hundred yards from the market, near Faith Nazarene Primary School and close to San Ignacio’s town hall, the attack unfolded. Assistant Superintendent Stacy Smith, a staff officer with the local police force, told reporters that security footage collected from the area confirms the two officers were followed by two suspects riding a motorcycle. When Smith, who was driving, pulled onto Hospital Street, one of the suspects pulled out a firearm and opened fire, striking both officers multiple times. Smith lost control of the vehicle immediately after being hit, causing the car to roll backward down the adjacent hill before crashing into the entrance gate of a nearby property.
The tragedy has left the tight community reeling. The doors of the San Ignacio-Santa Elena town hall are now draped with a black mourning wreath, and Mayor Earl Trapp canceled the planned sports day and sent all municipal employees home for the day, overwhelmed by the collective grief.
Mayor Trapp, who counted Smith as a close personal friend of more than 30 years, remembered Smith as a beloved community figure and passionate football enthusiast who served as a father figure and mentor to countless local young people. Osgaya, who leaves behind three children, had served the Cayo District community for more than five years and was honored as Cayo’s Woman of the Year in 2016. Speaking through overwhelming grief, Beatrice Rowland, Osgaya’s daughter, described her mother as a loving, hardworking, and caring person who made friends with everyone she met. White, who worked closely with the pair, shared that he is still unable to process the sudden loss, saying the sight of their usual market post continues to leave him heartbroken and unable to focus on his work.
Local law enforcement has launched a full investigation into the attack, working to identify the perpetrators and determine why the two officers were specifically targeted. Members of the San Ignacio community are organizing a candlelight vigil to honor Smith and Osgaya, scheduled for Thursday evening near the Macal River, and the town council is cooperating fully with police to help secure justice for the officers’ families and the community they served.