SCAM ARTISTS HIT PROSPECTIVE LAND OWNERS IN THE BELIZE AND TOLEDO DISTRICTS

July 29, 2010

Scam artists have been hard at work in the Belize and Toledo districts and tonight two prospective landowners are out of cash and real estate as a result. According to businessman Nicholi Noel Alvarado, he was approached by a man identified as Julius Martinez who offered his service to facilitate the acquisition of title for lots located at Tropical Park near Hattieville village. Alvarado told police that the initial contact was made in March of this year and that on several occasions since, he handed over a total of six thousand dollars in cash to Martinez. Alvarado says that last month, Martinez handed over seven titles, purportedly for land in Tropical Park. However, when Alvarado made checks at the Lands Department in Belmopan, he got the bad news: the documents were not genuine. Police are now looking for the facilitator, who as we said, is identified as Julius Martinez. In the Toledo district a similar scam was perpetrated; but this time the victim is in the hole for ten times the amount of cash. Frank Dorkits, reports that between the end of January 2009 and July of last year, a man identified as William Lopez was preparing several land documents for him, that would have secured four hundred and seventy acres of land in Elridegeville, a village along the Southern Highway. Dorkits told authorities that Lopez produced and handed over three documents, a land purchase approval form, an inspection report and a lease approval. For the three documents, Lopez reportedly charged a fee of twenty six thousand, four hundred and nineteen dollars and eighty one cents, which Dorkits says that he paid in thirteen installments. On July tenth however, Dorkits found out that the papers from Lopez that he was holding on to was worth no more than the story sold to him by the alleged facilitator. Police are now looking for William Lopez who may be able to explain what happened the twenty six grand he obtained from Dorkits and where is his land documents.

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