By Breaking Belize News Staff: Forty-seven-year-old Richard Codd is serving a total of one year and five months in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated assault with a machete on a Ranger Security Guard, along with an additional sentence tied to an outstanding theft fine.
Codd, a resident of Zacaranda Street, appeared before the Chief Magistrate in Court #2, where he admitted to assaulting a 51-year-old woman during an incident on Christmas Day. The court sentenced him to one year’s imprisonment for the aggravated assault. He must then serve a further five months in default of payment for an outstanding $905 fine stemming from a March 2025 theft conviction. The Chief Magistrate ordered that both sentences run consecutively.
Court proceedings revealed that Codd initially pleaded not guilty, then opted to change his plea, telling the court he feared remaining on remand because he had no one to post bail. Despite disputing the complainant’s version of events and claiming she fabricated the allegations, Codd maintained his guilty plea.
The Chief Magistrate initially expressed concern about accepting the plea, given Codd’s conflicting statements, and stood the matter down to have the virtual complainant brought before the court. When the woman testified, she told the court that Codd was the aggressor and that she did not provoke him in any way. She said he hurled profanities at her before pulling a machete and threatening her life.
Taking into account Codd’s explanation and his 19 previous convictions, the Chief Magistrate set a starting point of one year out of a possible three-year sentence. She increased the sentence to 18 months due to his criminal history, then applied a six-month reduction for his early guilty plea, resulting in a final sentence of 12 months for aggravated assault.
In total, Codd will serve one year and five months behind bars, as the court ruled that the sentences are to run consecutively and not concurrently.
According to police reports, the woman visited the police station on Christmas Day after Codd allegedly approached her, verbally abused her, swung a machete in her direction, and told her, “I wah kill yuh.” She later positively identified Codd to police, leading to his arrest and subsequent charge.
The post 1 year 5 months in jail for man who thought he was ‘El Machete’ appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: Forty-seven-year-old Richard Codd is serving a total of one year and five months in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated assault with a machete on a Ranger Security Guard, along with an additional sentence tied to an outstanding theft fine. Codd, a resident of Zacaranda Street, appeared before the Chief
The post 1 year 5 months in jail for man who thought he was ‘El Machete’ appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
