In a significant escalation of tensions within Belize’s law enforcement community, legal representatives for whistleblower “Mr. Pou” have delivered a scathing response to Police Commissioner Richard Rosado’s recent statements regarding the Budna kidnapping investigation.
The controversy erupted when Commissioner Rosado, addressing allegations that officers were coerced into providing false statements, publicly encouraged individuals with evidence to come forward. This invitation was immediately characterized by Pou’s attorneys as “disingenuous” and part of a systematic pattern of institutional gaslighting.
Legal counsel Nazira Uc Myles and Leeroy F. Banner issued a comprehensive rebuttal alleging that their client’s career has been systematically dismantled in retaliation for his refusal to remain silent about investigative irregularities. The legal team asserts that Pou had previously raised concerns through proper channels with both senior police officials and government authorities, only to encounter what they describe as “inaction and hostility.
The statement particularly condemns what it characterizes as the Commissioner’s patronizing attitude toward Belizean citizens, stating: “Our client finds profoundly insulting the audacity of Dr. Rosado to treat the citizenry as an uneducated audience incapable of recognizing evidentiary manipulation.”
In response to the perceived institutional failure, Pou’s legal representatives are demanding the immediate formation of an independent investigative body operating in conjunction with the Director of Public Prosecutions. They argue that the Police Department lacks the necessary impartiality to investigate itself when its highest-ranking officials and political affiliates face serious questions about their conduct.
The escalating confrontation now places pressure on the Minister of Home Affairs to intervene, with Pou’s team urging the implementation of robust transparency protocols and protection mechanisms for whistleblowers within Belize’s law enforcement apparatus.