For 20 years, Aaron Castillo has been more than just a vendor at Belize City’s Michael Finnegan Market — he has been an institution. When the space that now houses Jun’s Meat Shop was nothing more than an unused, undersized plot originally earmarked for a fish market that never materialized, Castillo poured his own money into expanding it into the thriving stall it is today. Generations of local shoppers have relied on his business for meat products, and through decades of growth, Castillo has stood by the market as it evolved into the busy community hub it is in 2026.
That longstanding connection was abruptly severed earlier this month, when Belize City Council enforcement officers changed the locks on Castillo’s two connected booths without prior warning, barring him from his business. The lockout came just one day after the council issued an immediate vacate order, a move that has left the 20-year veteran vendor furious and fighting to get his livelihood back.
Castillo acknowledges that he has not fully paid the 2026 trade license fees required to operate his business, but he argues that the council violated a prior agreement that allowed him to pay off the outstanding balance through a court-approved payment plan. He has produced receipts proving he made ongoing installment payments through July 2026, and says he continued meeting his payment obligations even as the council moved forward with the lockout. With the new school year just starting in Belize, Castillo says the sudden shutdown has stripped him of the income he relies on to support his family and cover basic living expenses, calling the council’s actions unfair and unnecessary.
“I built this place. That spot was nothing before I took it over,” Castillo told reporters. “They come in by force and locked me out with no warning, when I was still holding up my end of the agreement to pay what I owe. This takes food right out of my mouth with school starting right now. This isn’t fair, and I’m calling on the government to step in and fix this.”
The Belize City Council says the lockout is not a personal targeting of Castillo, but part of a wider city-wide crackdown on unlicensed business operations. Council officials confirmed that Castillo is one of 39 vendors across the city that have received stop orders this cycle for operating without valid 2026 trade licenses.
Jermaine Hyde, municipal court manager for the Belize City Council, explained that while Castillo did make a partial payment toward his 2026-2027 license, the payment did not cover the full outstanding balance, and no complete active license application is currently on file with the city’s Trade License Board. Hyde argued that treating Castillo differently because of his long tenure at the market would be unfair to the hundreds of other compliant business owners across Belize City who have already paid their full license fees to operate.
“We understand he has been here for decades, and we recognize his history at the market,” Hyde said. “But he has operated long enough to know the rules and requirements to do business here. It would not be fair to every other business that complied with the rules and paid what they owed to make an exception for one vendor. The Trade License Board meets every three months to review applications and compliance issues, so there have been multiple opportunities for him to resolve this.”
The lockout has sparked local debate over how municipal governments balance enforcement of regulatory rules with flexibility for longstanding small business owners who have contributed to the growth of public markets. For Castillo, the immediate concern is regaining access to the business he built from scratch, before the financial impact of the shutdown becomes irreversible.