Court clears former Belize PM of stealing US$10M

The former Prime Minister of Belize has been cleared of charges of stealing US$10 million dollars. But Said Musa is not out of the woods yet. The Caricom nation's Director of Public Prosecutions is planning to appeal.

Musa was accused of taking the money, which was given to the Belize government by the Venezuelan government in 2007. He and former cabinet minister Ralph Fonseca were jointly charged with the offence.

In the preliminary stages of the case, a magistrate ruled that there was insufficient evidence to commit Fonseca to trial, while ruling that Musa should face charges.

On Monday, Chief Justice Dr. Abdulai Conteh quashed that decision, ruling that the magistrate erred in his decision. Conteh said if the same evidence was insufficient to commit Fonseca to trial the same should apply to Musa.

Musa has maintained that he is innocent and told media Monday he feels vindicated by the decision.