Police Seek Missing Items of Murder Victim Maria Antonia Plaza Gomez

The San Pedro Police Department has released information about two items that have been reported missing, belonging to the late Maria Antonia Plaza Gomez. These items include a silver Panasonic LUMIX HD Digital Camera and a Nokia N96 Cell Phone (pictured below).

NOKIA N96 Slide Phone

Silver Panasonic LUMIX HD Camera

The San Pedro Police Department is now seeking assistance from the public in the recovery or identification of the missing items or identifying individuals in possession of them. Information given to the Police Department will be kept confidential and used cautiously. Any assistance rendered to the Police Department will be greatly appreciated and an asset to the department to solve this heinous crime. Contact the San Pedro Police Department at 226-2022, 922 or 1-800-922-TIPS.

Official Post Mortem Report 

    Dr. Mario Estradaban’s post mortem examination report on the body of Spanish National Maria Antonia Gomez Plaza indicates that the cause of death is due to strangulation. Two persons are detained and third person is being sought who can help the Police solve this recent murder. Plaza’s partially nude body showed signs of violence and a belt was found around her neck, believed to be the instrument used to strangulate her.

    Family members of Plaza will be transporting her body back home, but the police are still conducting an intense investigation to capture her murderer and bring that person to justice. Plaza was last seen in the company of a stock man on Coconut Drive, less than half a mile from Corona del Mar Hotel where she was staying.

    Sgt. Fitzroy Yearwood, Belize Police Press Officer had this to say to Marion Ali of News 5 in Belize City:

    “Well the person we are looking for is of Caucasian decent. The persons that we have detained, at some point during her stay on the island, they were seen either communicating with her or in actually moving around with her on the island with at least one of the two persons that we have detained. What we’re asking is that if members of the community know this person that we are looking for, if they can come forward and just assist us, even if it’s just for identification purpose—just for us to know who we are actually looking for that would help and go a long way. People who actually saw this woman on the island and made this photo available, they would remember who they saw her with and we are asking them to come forward so as not to prejudice the case for identification purposes.”

Reward Being Offered!

Flowers and candles were placed to respect the memory of the late Maria Plaza Gomez

Pedro's, in conjunction with Ambergris Daily, is offering a reward of $1,000.00Bze to anyone with information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person involved in the murder of Maria Antonia Plaza Gomez. Anyone interested in joining this effort can kindly contact Pedro's or the Ambergris Daily. So far San Pedro Police have two persons detained for questioning of the murder case.

Missing Person Found Dead

 

    On Sunday, October 31, San Pedro Police received a report that a female flight attendant of Maya Island Air Regional had gone missing. And shortly after 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 2, police found the lifeless body of 37-year-old, Maria Antonia Plaza Gomez.

    Maria Antonia Plaza Gomez arrived in Belize City on Friday, October 29 and told the rest of the flight crew that she would be spending the night on San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. She checked in at the Corona del Mar Hotel and went out for the evening. 

The body of Maria being removed from the murder site and transported to south end of island for the autopsy

    It has been confirmed that Plaza Gomez was seen on Saturday night at the Holiday Hotel Halloween Party and on Sunday morning, October 31, she told hotel employees that she was going to confirm her return flight for 2:00 p.m. at the airstrip. A surveillance camera at the hotel captured Plaza Gomez leaving the premises at around 7:58 a.m.; she then stopped at the Ramon’s Village gift shop where she made a purchase and around 10:00 a.m. she reconfirmed her flight to Belize City at the Maya Island Air airstrip office.

    After leaving Maya Island Air, Plaza Gomez walked back towards her hotel. News Five interviewed Mr. Arnulfo Escobar, a fruit vendor in front of Ramon’s Village, who stated that he saw Plaza Gomez with a tall Caucasian male who had long hair and carried a backpack. After she made a purchase at his fruit stall, Plaza along with her male companion, continued in the direction of her hotel south of town.

    That was the last time Plaza Gomez was seen and when she did not make her flight back to the city and didn’t show up to work, Maya Island reported her missing. San Pedro Police along with Maya Island Air personnel commenced a search for Plaza Gomez and on Monday, November 1, the community of San Pedro came together distributing fliers with Plaza’s picture and posting them on lap posts around town and conducting a search around the island.

    Three days after her disappearance police intensified their search and on Tuesday, November 2, shortly after 3:00 p.m. police stumbled upon the body of a female in a bushy area of a private lot located on the beachfront area which is off an alley that connects to Coconut Drive. This location is just a block away from the hotel where she was staying.

Bushes under the house's veranda where the lifeless body of Plaza Gomez was found

  Maya Island personnel were quickly informed about the finding and the area was blocked by police as the area was quickly filled with onlookers. The lifeless body of Plaza Gomez was found in a bushy area under the veranda of the building covered with a floating device. The building is occupied by local businessman Mr. Dennis Sunderman.

    It was confirmed to us that the body was found in a preliminary state of decomposition and was partially nude. Plaza Gomez was wearing a white tank-top blouse with dark trousers and her blouse was pulled up to her neck and her bra had been pulled down, exposing her breasts. There were many visible bruises on the body including bite marks.

    It was about 6:00 p.m. when Dr. Mario Estradaban, coroner of Belize, arrived to the scene along with a forensic team of investigators. The lifeless body of Plaza was removed from the crime scene at about 8:15 p.m. and was taken to an isolated area south of Ambergris Caye, in the Boca Ciega Area, where Dr. Estradaban conducted an autopsy. The body was later transported to Belize City via the police boat where Dr. Estradaban will continue his investigations.

    Plaza Gomez was violently tortured, assaulted and brutally murdered; she was not raped. Dr. Estradaban’s findings confirm that Plaza Gomez was killed at the place where she was found and the gruesome murder occurred on Sunday, October 31 sometime between 12 midday and 2:00 p.m. Police reports and Ambergris Today research confirm that this is the first murder case of the year.

Police blocked off beach front area to conduct their investigations

Beachfront home where the body of Maria was found

Police and special constables await the recovery of the body

Forensics officer Arian Jones and Special Constable Karim Maroun enter the crime scene

Resident of house talks with Police Officer

 

 

Pictures of the Crime Scene the following day

 

Drowning Incident, North Ambergris Caye

Reports coming into our office since last night are that a resort maintenance worker drowned last night in an incident that took place at a pier after a night of partying. Gregorio Cornejo, 60-year-old, maintenance worker of a resort in North Ambergris Caye, drowned after he was pushed off a pier during a drunken scramble that involved three people. The men were apparently drinking during a staff party when the incident occurred. Cornejo’s body was transported to Belize City where an autopsy will be conducted and as of press time four people have been detained for questioning at the San Pedro Police Department. (More on this Thursday’s issue of Ambergris Today)

Attempted Robbery Ends in Death

One man is dead and another one injured after an attempted robbery went wrong, but this time it was the assailants who ended up on the wrong side of the attack. Shortly after 9p.m. two masked men came out of hiding from the road side after they stopped two other men driving to town by placing an obstacle that blocked the road. Initial police investigations explain that the two men driving to town were returning from hunting on the northern end of the island. The attack occurred in the vicinity of the Tres Cocos Area. When the driver stopped the vehicle to remove the obstacle on the road, it was when the masked men attempted to rob them. Fearing for his life, the driver fired his licensed gun at the assailants killing one and injuring the other of who was able to escape. The San Pedro Police is continuing their investigations. Read more on this week’s issue of Ambergris Today, out on Thursday.