Three Men Charged Following Violent Home Invasion in San Marcos Village

Three men from San Marcos Village in the Toledo District have now been formally charged in connection with a violent chopping incident that occurred during a reported home invasion earlier last month.  Police say that on Friday, May 29, Pablo Muku, Edward Muku, and Verhenio Pop were arrested and jointly charged with aggravated burglary in relation to the May 17 attack involving Orlando and Marcia Makin at their San Marcos residence.  According to reports, Orlando Makin sustained chop wounds during the confrontation after several individuals allegedly entered the family’s home.  A medico-legal report documented injuries including a cut wound to the left side of Makin’s neck along with additional wounds to the finger and thumb area of his right hand. The injuries were classified as harm and wounding.  When the accused men appeared in court, Edward Muku pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him and was fined eight hundred dollars plus five dollars court costs on each charge. The court ordered that the fines be paid by July 31, in default of which he could face eight months’ imprisonment.  Meanwhile, Pablo Muku and Verhenio Pop pleaded not guilty to the charges. Both men were granted bail and are scheduled to return to court on July 14 for disclosure proceedings.  Minister of Home Affairs, Oscar Mira, told reporters on Friday that tensions within San Marcos Village have been escalating for several months and that authorities are aware of the underlying conflicts affecting the community. He explained that police, along with village leaders, have been attempting mediation and other intervention efforts in hopes of preventing further violence.

Oscar Mira, Minister of Home Affairs: “We are working very, very closely with the village leaders in the south. It is not an easy situation to deal with. I am very confident though that our investigators are going to do the right thing. It is a village where tensions have been rising for some time and I am sure that arrests will be made very soon. But we have to make sure that we do the investigation properly, that there is nothing that can come back later on and prejudice the investigation, and prejudice the charges that are going to be laid. It’s unfortunate that inside one village, we have this division. It’s a division that has been growing not only in San Marcus, we have seen it in Indian Creek and we have seen it spread to other communities as well. The Ministry of the Indigenous Affairs is also working with us to ensure that they do their part, but the police department will definitely continue the investigation and where charges need to be laid, that is what is going to happen.”

San Marcos Village is on the Southern Highway, approximately 18 to 22 miles from Punta Gorda Town, Toledo District.