In July, INTERPOL issued a warrant for the arrest of twenty-eight year old San Ignacio resident Michael Silva. Silva is wanted in connection with the September 2011 murder of nineteen year old Maritza Santos, his girlfriend. Police say that when they visited Silva’s home in San Ignacio, they found Santos dead with injuries to the head. They say Silva was also present, and had ingested the herbicide gramaxone in an attempt to take his own life. He received treatment locally and was then flown out of the country for medical reasons. He never returned to the country, and after reports that he was spotted in Guatemala, local police alerted INTERPOL who issued the warrant for his arrest. Today, for the first time since the incident, Michael Silva’s father, Dan Silva, spoke to News Five. He says he doesn’t know what happened on the night Maritza Santos died. According to Silva, his son is still receiving treatment in Guatemala, but will be coming back to Belize very soon to tell his side of the story.
Dan Silva, Father of Michael Silva
“This thing with my son…he’s coming back. He’s seeing a doctor, he’s coming back, and he’s not hiding. But in Belize people blow it out of proportion or it becomes political. The government has his passport…we just have not been saying our side of the story. But his passport is being held by the Ministry in Guatemala City, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He’s seeing a doctor, he’s coming back. People have jumped to conclusions and they don’t even know what happened. He was dying as you know. People that ingest that poison…few people survive. So he will come back and explain his side of the story. He’s not running away. He doesn’t have a passport. People have been…and I understand that this is a tragedy for both families. I wish it didn’t happen, but these things happen and he has to come and explain his side of the story.”
Mike Rudon
“So he is currently still receiving treatment?”
Dan Silva
Dan Silva
“He’s still seeing a doctor and he’ll be coming back pretty soon. He has his attorneys and he’ll come and explain his side of the story. You know, it’s natural…people are concerned about what happened…but there are always two sides to every story and he will come and explain his side. He wants to come and explain his side of the story. These were two lovers…people that were in love. What happened…it could have been an accident, it could be so many things and nobody knows. He drank the poison; we don’t know what he did. We don’t know. We don’t know if it was emo…nobody knows.”
View the full article