By Breaking Belize News Staff: A 26-year-old man who used a fake Facebook profile bearing the image and name of Minister Cordel Hyde to scam a woman out of $500 has been fined and ordered to compensate his victim after entering a guilty plea in the High Court.
Callie Barrow, a former employee of Brodies Medicine Room, appeared on Thursday afternoon before Justice Nigel Pilgrim, where he was handed a non-custodial sentence following a plea agreement reached with the Crown earlier this week.
Barrow was fined $500 for the offense of dishonestly obtaining a wrongful credit and was additionally ordered to pay $700 in compensation to the victim. Both sums must be paid by June 30, 2026. Failure to pay the court fine will result in 12 months imprisonment, while defaulting on the compensation may lead to distress proceedings.
The court heard that in January 2024, the woman who was scammed received a Facebook friend request from an account bearing the name and photo of Minister Cordel Hyde. Believing the account to be legitimate, she began communicating with the individual and sought assistance with a land transfer.
During their exchanges, the impersonator instructed her to deposit $500 into a Heritage Bank account to facilitate the process. Trusting the request, she made the deposit on February 7, 2024.
On that same day, Barrow visited the bank, discovered he had $600 in his account, and withdrew the full amount.
The woman later became suspicious of the account and reported the matter to police. An investigation was launched, which ultimately traced the transaction back to Barrow, leading to his arrest and charge.
In court, the prosecution was represented by Crown Counsel Kirk Brown, while Barrow was represented by Legal Aid attorney Sherigne Rodriguez. He had been out on bail of $6,000 prior to the resolution of the case.
The guilty plea and sentencing bring closure to the matter, sparing Barrow immediate imprisonment but leaving him financially accountable for his actions.
The post Fake Cordel Hyde fined but avoids jail for scamming woman who thought she was buying a land from Minister online for $500 appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: A 26-year-old man who used a fake Facebook profile bearing the image and name of Minister Cordel Hyde to scam a woman out of $500 has been fined and ordered to compensate his victim after entering a guilty plea in the High Court. Callie Barrow, a former employee of Brodies
The post Fake Cordel Hyde fined but avoids jail for scamming woman who thought she was buying a land from Minister online for $500 appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
