By Belize Live News Staff: For two weeks, the orders came in by WhatsApp. Cash for mom. Dog food. Fried chicken. Rice and beans. And every time, a Belize City delivery man says, he paid out of his own pocket on a promise that he would be paid back.
Now he is out $501 and has turned to the police.
In his report, the delivery man listed ten separate deliveries of cash and items between September 29 and October 12, all dropped off to the customer’s mother on Usher Street.
When he finally asked about payment, he says the customer thanked him for his patience and promised a deposit the following morning. He kept delivering. The money never arrived, and his calls and messages went unanswered.
The delivery man then started asking around the neighbourhood himself to find out who the customer really was. He passed on what he learned to police, along with the phone numbers used to contact him.
Police have recorded his statement and say further enquiries will be made to identify and locate the man. The offence under investigation is obtaining property by deception.
The case is a warning for delivery drivers and small business owners: be careful about extending credit to customers you cannot identify, and collect payment before or at delivery.
