Guatemala. The Guatemala Times was contacted by representatives of the ex-pat community in Rio Dulce after the tragic death of Don Dryden and the injuries of his wife Nancy on the night of Saturday 9th of August, which has already been reported by the mayor news agencies.
The ex-pat community in Rio Dulce, is a group of very active, constructive people who care about their community as a whole, Guatemalans and foreigners. They care about the progress and wellbeing of this very important tourist location that is used as an anchoring place for more than a thousand boats during the hurricane season. It is an ideal spot for shelter from the storms of the Atlantic coast and the entire Caribbean. They have a website with very relevant and helpful information for visitors and residing foreigners called www.riodulcechisme.com. In fact this website, run by professional journalists has more detailed information about these violent incidents than any other report we have read.
The ex-pat community considers that the mayor news agencies did not cover the story in a comprehensive way and that the complete story needs to be told so appropriate actions can be taken to improve the security situation on Rio Dulce.
We spoke to them by phone to obtain information directly from the sources and to present a more complete version of the story that has already made international headlines.
Timeline of violent attacks on boats of Rio Dulce:
On August 9th 2008 Don Dryden was killed while resisting an attack and his wife Nancy was severely injured. There had already been several previous incidents where boats anchoring in the river Rio Dulce had been attacked, and petty thievery had occurred, but never in such a violent manner.
Additional attacks occurred on the night of August 11 of 2008. Two newly arriving boats where attacked at night and loose items of the boats were stolen. Nobody was injured. But the attackers used machetes and threatened the boat owners and their behavior was similar to the incident where Don Dryden was killed.
Modus operandi:
They attack mainly boats that are anchored in the river, not the ones staying in the marinas, a group of four or five people comes in a small boat, one person is armed with a gun, the other attackers use machetes or knifes. They always demand American dollars in cash, their mayor interest seems to be to make a quick steal and leave. If they do not find cash, they steal loose items from the boats.
In the last several attacks that happened Monday 11th of August 2008, at night, they came prepared with a new bolt cutter that was left behind on the scene of the robbery. This last incident could indicate that the robbers had previous knowledge of what was on board of that particular boat, and they came equipped to be able to steal that specific item.
The ex-pats are not sure if this gang is local or are coming in from Belize or Honduras.
The fact that this latest attack occurred only two nights after the murder on Saturday night and subsequent upheaval of local authorities and the press is very significant. The attackers are not afraid of the local authorities.
The local website www.riodulcechisme.com reported that The Vice-President of Guatemala, Rafael Espado, took a personal interest in this incident and helped as much as possible. The INGUAT staff also helped in coordinating the movement of Dan Dryden´s body from the funeral home in Fronteras to join the family for a flight back to the city.
Yesterday, August 13, President Alvaro Colon declared the investigation of this crime a priority.
Today, August 14, a contingent of 40 special police where seen investigating the area.
The ex-pat community and the Guatemalan residents in Rio Dulce need answers form the local law enforcement institutions. How is the security situation being addressed, what is being done now, what will be done in the future?
After the trauma of these recent violent incidents the community needs reassurance that they will be protected. How can this community together with local law enforcement, the military naval base and other institutions as a whole cooperate and organize to improve their safety and security. These are the issues that need to be addressed urgently.
The Guatemala Times will be reporting on this ongoing story.
Photos: Don Sampson
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