By Belize Live News: Former Coast Guard officer Keyren Tzib has been sentenced to nearly five more years in prison for the attempted murder of her former colleague, Kurt Hyde. The ruling was handed down by High Court Justice Candace Nanton, who emphasized the severity of the crime.
Tzib, who had previously been treated for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), shot Hyde in the back of the head with an M4 carbine in April 2015. The incident occurred aboard a Coast Guard vessel returning from San Pedro Town. Hyde’s injuries were catastrophic, leaving him blind, unable to speak, and medically unfit for work.
Justice Nanton noted that the circumstances warranted a maximum term of at least 13 years imprisonment. Despite arguments from Tzib’s attorneys, Arthur Saldivar and Darrell Bradley, for a non-custodial sentence, the judge ruled that the law stipulates that an attempt at a crime carries up to the same punishment as if the crime had been committed. Tzib could have faced the death penalty or life imprisonment if the Crown had pursued it.
However, Justice Nanton deducted six years from the sentence due to the inordinate delay in Tzib’s case, which took nine years to come to trial. An additional two years were deducted for mitigating factors related to Tzib’s mental state and her culpability. Including two months of remand time after her bail was revoked in April for breach of conditions, Tzib will serve four years and ten months more behind bars.
The judge also ordered that Tzib receive treatment for her mental illness and be held in a facility appropriate for someone with her condition. Notably, Tzib showed no remorse for the shooting, which factored into the sentencing decision.
Saldivar highlighted that Tzib’s actions were triggered by a mental breakdown allegedly caused by the State and her former employers covering up rape allegations she made against another colleague. An appeal has been launched against both the conviction and the sentence.
