By Belize Live News Staff: The Ministry of Home Affairs has vehemently refuted a recent viral social media post claiming that as many as 70 drug planes have landed illegally in Belize between 2020 and 2022.
The Ministry released a statement this week clarifying the official figures, stating the number of illegal landings is far lower than the “70” being circulated. The government’s data, reportedly supported by official verification, contests the figures sourced from a supposed leak of Mexican ministry emails.
According to the official GOB records, the total number of illegal landings compiled between 2018 and 2021 is as follows:
2018: 12 landings
2019: 9 landings
2020: 10 landings
2021: 15 landings
“This confirms that only 25 illegal landings occurred during 2020-2021, far below the claim of 70 being circulated,” the Ministry stated. Furthermore, the GOB claims that since 2022, the trend has shown a marked decline, with only two incidents officially recorded.
The Ministry criticized the viral posts for relying on unverified and inflated data, emphasizing that these claims are not supported by the official verified data maintained by Belizean officals.
